


Star Treatment

by tristeza



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Angst with a Happy Ending, Daddy Issues, Emotionally Repressed, Established Relationship, F/F, F/M, Female Friendship, Female Relationships, Hate to Love, Hurt/Comfort, Modern Royalty, Slow Burn, Strained Relationships, bisexual awakening
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:07:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 45,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26364667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tristeza/pseuds/tristeza
Summary: Asami gets to meet her favorite band and is shocked to find that they not only know who she is, but her favorite member doesn't seem to like her very much.
Relationships: Asami & Tahno (Avatar), Bolin & Asami Sato, Bolin & Korra (Avatar), Bolin & Mako (Avatar), Bolin/Opal (Avatar), Implied Korra/Kuvira, Korra & Tahno (Avatar), Korra/Asami Sato, Mako/Asami Sato
Comments: 147
Kudos: 477





	1. Another Graceless Night

**Author's Note:**

> As I'm writing the story the tags, characters, relationships, and most importantly rating will change. This will eventually be an explicit fic if this goes semi-according to plan.

Adding soy sauce and garlic to any ramen packet has no right to make it as good as it does. Yet here Asami is, at 3 A.M on a Tuesday night making ramen for herself and her boyfriends brother. She brought the noodles to a boil and prepared a small pan with oil to fry the noodles for a bit. She knew Bolin liked his a little crispy and she was happy to oblige.

“So then what happened?” She asked him, making sure to keep an eye on the oil that was starting to sizzle. 

Even though she was dating Mako, Bolin was by far her favorite brother. He skipped college in order to follow his girlfriend and support her during her education. It ended up working out because shortly after they were married he was discovered on the set of a popular B movie and became an instant hit filming remakes of cheesy action movies from the days of early film. The pay was good and more importantly, he had fun and was able to get Opal through not only her undergraduate but her graduate degree as well. They spent most of their time traveling, often apart for work but sometimes together. Asami had never met a more happy couple.

“Well one thing led to another and he introduced me to that band you liked. Kill the Kennedys I think?”

Asami crushed the egg she was about to fry in her hand and looked over at Bolin trying her hardest to keep her composure.

“Um, Asami.” Bolin looked over her shoulder from the kitchen island. “I don’t think you’re supposed to make eggs like that.”

She grabbed a cloth and started to clean up her hand, making sure to never break eye contact with Bolin. “We can always make more.” She smiled.

Bolin walked over and pushed Asami over to a stool, taking over the cooking and cleaning up the rest of the egg in Asami’s place. 

“Okay so tell me everything!” She beamed. 

Asami has loved Kill the Kennedys for as long as she could remember. They were the ones who got her through the many endless nights of study and homework during her later high school and college years. She knew every song forward and backward and had even probably memorized their band’s Wikipedia page. Out of all the things she loved most was the drummer, Korra. Her long brown hair always up in a ponytail and blue eyes so intense they could probably set you on fire. She couldn't help but try and emulate Korras tank top straight from the beach look.

“Right!” Bolin continued, plating their instant ramen in front of them and digging for utensils in the cutlery drawer. So I met up with the other girl, I forgot her name but she was standing next to Korra and I complimented the show that night. She laughed and invited me to eat Thai food with her and the band. I didn’t have anything better to do so I went with them to a local joint and we hit it off really well! She lives in LA close by Opal and I so we have plans to hang out after her last tour date. I even hit it off with her manager Tenzin! Do you know that he travels with his whole family? His wife is pregnant and is basically everyone's mom.”

Asami’s stomach was doing summersaults. She’s always wanted to meet the band or even go to a live show, but her father always made sure that she was busy during the times she wanted to go. If she played her cards right this could probably be her chance to meet the band and get to talk to Korra. 

“By the way-” he pulled her bowl over to him, knowing that she no longer had an appetite. “What are you doing on your birthday?”

“Charity event for my dad.” She blinked. “Why?”

“Well, I know you like them, but their final tour date is in Vegas 3 days after your birthday and Korra was able to hook up VIP tickets when I mentioned my sister-in-law was like their biggest fan.”

“Are you serious?” She gawked. “Because I love you more than I love myself but I swear to God if this whole thing is a joke and Mako is recording me I will make sure Opal leaves you and spends the rest of her life making you miserable.”

“Really!” He chuckled. He wasn’t used to her being so serious.

She sprang up from her chair and ran over to him almost knocking him out of his chair. 

"Those tickets have been sold out for months! I love you so much Bolin." She was almost screaming.

He hugged her back with one hand and slurped his noodles in the other one, taking care to not drip sauce on her fancy silk bathrobe. He couldn't help but notice she smelled a little like Mako’s favorite body wash.

"Ahem." They both heard a fake cough and turned over to the hallway where Mako stood. "What's going on here." He raised an eyebrow. 

Asami let go of Bolin and beamed over at Mako. 

"Honey! You'll never guess what Bolin got me for my birthday."

"Is it a new robe? Because that one is covered in food."

Asami rolled her eyes and rolled up her sleeve to not drag in the bowl anymore.

"He met the lead singer of Kill the Kennedys and managed to get VIP tickets for me for my birthday!" She bounced a little in place finding it hard to calm down. Saying it out loud was making it feel real.

"Oh." Mako said flatly. "I thought you had that thing with your dad?" 

Asami faltered for a bit. Mako really knew how to drag her back down to earth. She took a deep breath and exhaled. 

"The concert is in Vegas a couple of days after. So we'll be done with him by then." She smiled again. Her love for KTK was stronger than Mako’s lack of enthusiasm.

"Cool." He took a seat next to Bolin who chose to stay out of the conversation. "Am I invited?" He took a stray noodle from one of the bowls with his fingers and placed it in his mouth.

"I don't know." Asami answered truthfully. It was honestly the last thing she was thinking about. She looked over at Bolin, knowing that he would have answers.

"Yeah! I asked for 4 tickets. Two for you and Mako and two for Opal and I." He pulled his bowl out of Mako’s reach and stuffed as many noodles as he could into his mouth.

Asami squealed and kissed Bolin on the cheek, making sure to ignore Mako’s lingering eyes. She thanked Bolin once again and reminded the brothers to clean up their bowls after they were done. She headed to her bedroom to remove her robe and get ready for bed. Her nightly ritual was calming to her, everything from picking up her long wavy hair in a loose bun on the top of her head to applying the myriad of nightly serums that her father and publicity team nag at her to put on every night. It was the only time she could really turn her brain off and let her body return to the default factory setting. 

Except this time, she quite literally couldn't stop buzzing. The back of her head started to hurt from how much she was smiling and she could feel her heart fluttering in her chest. In just a few short weeks she would meet her all-time favorite band and her dream would literally come true. Bolin had always pulled through for her in the times she needed it the most. Not the same could be said about Mako.

She shook the thoughts of her beloved from her head and sped through her night routine as fast as she could and jumped into bed. She wasn’t in the mood to wait up and fight with Mako or even look at him right now. She laid down on her side and started to regulate her breathing, thoughts filled with the leaked live performances of her favorite band and pretending she was one of the ones shouting in the never-ending crowd of fans. 

She didn’t even notice as Mako stumbled through the room in the dark only to plop down next to her, debating whether or not to reach out and caress her cheek. He reached out his hand and hovered over her just close enough to feel the heat from her face without actually touching her. He held it there for a few seconds before he pulled away. Mako let out a breath through his nose and sat on his side of the bed gently so as not to disturb Asami. He laid down and turned over to her; wondering where it all went wrong. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading until the end of chapter 1! I've been wanting to come back to writing for the better part of a year, but I couldn't get in the head space to write. The last fic I wrote before the last one was in 2017 and before that was 2015. I'm so much older and wiser (I would hope) since I started and my writing process has changed as well. I was really freaked out because I've always been the type pf person who needed to plan meticulously in order to write.
> 
> I've gone through two degrees, 3 job changes, an abusive relationship, meeting the love of my life, realizing I wasn't straight, and so many other things that have changed how I write. I realize that I don't have to plan everything so hard and I don't have to stick with it either. I can just write for fun and for my love of the couple and show. It's been really hard to accept change and it's been scary at times, but this pandemic has pushed me to see the growth in myself and give myself a change to write a multi-chapter fic.
> 
> I feel like this has become a diary entry and I'm sorry about that! Because this fic is ever changing and I'm not 100% sure how this will go, the tags, rating, characters, and relationships will be changing throughout the story so please keep that in mind! I've always wanted to write for my favorite couple so I'm happy just to be able to do so. I've had this idea for them for the better part of a year and I hope you enjoy this as much as I do.
> 
> Quick note: Asami is what I like to call "American" or "Unofficial" royalty. Basically this means that she's so rich that she's treated like royalty and hangs out with actual royal people. I'm still working on the world building so let me know what you guys think. I'm thinking that they're in America, but I'm not opposed to merging worlds.


	2. Heroes Fading

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Asami and Mako are really going through it.

"I don't think that's a good idea sweetheart." Asami's father Hiroshi said while watching get her hair rolled for their live television appearance.

Asami mustered all the strength she had not to roll her eyes. 

"What do you mean?" She asked calmly, playing dumb so that she could answer as little as possible.

"A concert in Las Vegas? I don't think it's appropriate for one, and two, I think it could be really dangerous. You won't even have bodyguards." His voice was level but stern. 

"I mean…" she paused for a second, choosing her words carefully. "Mako will be there." She smiled. 

Her father loosed at those words, but there was still concern in his eyes.

"Bolin and Opal will be there too. Plus Bolin knows the band so he also got us VIP tickets and seating, so someone will always be keeping an eye on us." She looked away from her dad so her stylist could add lip gloss to her look. She blotted her lips and turned back to him, giving him the best "please daddy" look she had.

"Also…" she paused only to tuck a piece of loose hair behind her ear. "I'm 26 now dad. I think if I'm old enough to do charity appearances for Future Industries then I'm also old enough to go to a concert with my friends." 

Hiroshi crossed his arms and looked away. Asami couldn't believe he was pouting at his age. He'd always been overprotective of her. She was his only child after all and after her mom died in a botched hostage negotiation; he'd always make sure to pay off the media to keep Asami's likeness out of the public. This was a double-edged sword, while most of the media left her alone, public demand for knowledge of her was at an all-time high and those who refused her father's bribes were all too eager to get photos of her.

She usually kept them at bay with a few planned appearances to keep them fed enough to not snoop around her garbage. These were all carefully crafted; no matter how dressed down or off guard she looked. These appearances were also always with Mako at the request of her father. He always thought that no one would try anything with her if they saw a 6'2 man standing next to her at all times. The fact that she didn't fall far behind him in height and build going ignored by him.

Hiroshi let out a long drawn out sigh and looked over at her, tears threatening to fall from his eyes.

Asami felt her heart pang in her chest. She was always weak when it came to her dad. That's how she ended up a 26-year-old woman who still asked her dad for permission to go out. 

"Plus you did first hire Mako to be my bodyguard when I turned 19. Look how that turned out!" She pleaded.

Hiroshi let out a small chuckle. "And look how well that turned out." He paused for a moment, lost in his thoughts. 

"Kill the Kenndys though?" He asked in disbelief. "The vulgar band you listened to in high school? I don't want you to be associated with that." He placed one hand on his hips and ran a finger through his hair with the other one.

"Quit that!" They both turned to the frantic voice that called out to him. "I just did your hair and I'm not going to do it again!" Their stylist scolded.

"Sorry." He apologized, hands in front of him.

"No one's going to recognize me, I promise." Asami used the pause to squeeze her argument in. "I'll make sure to tone down how I dress and do my make-up so that no one recognizes me." She smiled at him.

Hiroshi sighed again and paced around the small room. 

"It'll also be really dark. The concert starts at nine and probably won't stop until the early morning."

Hiroshi finally stopped and pinched the bridge of his nose under the glasses. Asami sat stiff as a board as she waited for her father's decision. She wouldn't know what to do if he said no, but she wasn't going to miss the concert. Even if that meant she had to go against him. Every second weighed heavy in her stomach, like a stone getting denser and denser until he finally spoke.

"Okay-" he started but was cut off by Asami's squeal of happiness. She jumped off from her chair and ran to hug him, feeling instantly weightless. He hugged her back, making sure to avoid the rollers in her hair.

"On three conditions." He pulled back and looked her in the eye.

"Anything." She answered truthfully. She couldn't stop smiling.

"One, you call me when you get to the concert." He paused only long enough to allow Asami to nod. "Two is that you or Mako have to text me every hour to tell me that you're safe; and three is that Mako is to be with you at any time no exceptions. None of this 'me and opal' or 'me and Bolin.'"

He looked at her, eyes searching for any understanding in her giddy face. Asami stood at position and brought her hand up to her forehead to salute her father, face impossibly serious. 

"Yes sir!" She answered, breaking as soon she saw the smile creeping up on her dad's lips. She rolled over laughing with relief that everything was finally falling into place.

Part of her filled with rage that her dad kept her in self-defense classes since she could walk and saw her take down Mako regularly in sparring matches only for him to not trust her. But whatever floats his boat.

"I'm sorry to break up this sweet little moment." Their stylist interrupted again. "But you need to leave." She pointed at Hiroshi. "If you want this event to start on time then Asami still has to get dressed and get her hair finished."

He nodded at her and looked at Asami one last time before he said his goodbyes and walked out the door.

Asami sat back in her seat and let her stylist finish her makeup. She was so happy that she could scream. She was tired of thinking about what everybody had a say about the thing in life that brought her joy. She always followed everything that her father asked of her to a T and never complained, even when it came to dating Mako. The fact that she can’t enjoy anything without someone giving her grief was almost too much for her to handle. What was the point of staying out of public scrutiny when there was enough of it at home to drown her? At least to the public, she could say it didn’t matter because they didn’t really know her, but she didn’t have the same luxury at home.

“Stop that.” Her stylist said, poking the eyebrows she hadn't noticed she was knitting. “You’re getting wrinkles and you’re too young and pretty for that." 

Asami looked at her for a second and doubled over laughing, knocking over one of the curlers in her hair.

“Asami!” She heard her stylist shriek. She couldn't stop laughing. It has been a while since she laughed deep in her belly to the point where her body hurt. She needed someone to take her away from herself.

“Geez! You’re lucky that it was time to take them out." she pouted.

"Thanks for that." Asami smiled, gently patting at the tears that gathered at the end of her eyes. She watched her stylist work her magic and got dressed, ready to take on the charity event her dad set up.

* * *

Asami pulled up to the hotel and handed her keys off to the valet. The bellboys met her and her crew at the door and rushed their items up to their respective suites. 

"Thanks for the ride Asami!" Opal thanked her for the hundredth time that night. "And for the accommodations for the next couple of days.

"Never a problem! I love hanging out with my favorite couple." She giggled along with Opal.

She could practically hear Mako's jaw clench as he crossed his arms and looked away. 

"Besides..." she started as she walked to the elevators. "I love the company when I drive." She admitted. Mako had a bad habit of falling asleep when he was the shotgun and he was a pretty bad driver, while Bolin and Opal could talk a mile a minute. They made for amazing companions on long road trips, or any road trips for that matter.

Once the elevator dinged they rode it up to their suites on the top floor to rest and get ready for the show.

Asami ran over to the bed in the biggest room in their impossibly huge suite and called shotgun as soon as her body hit the bed. She kicked off her shoes and settled in, feeling like she could knock out instantly.

She heard soft footsteps and felt the bed shift under the weight of Mako. 

"So now we're going to sleep in separate rooms?" he asked, voice strained.

She knew when he was trying to pick a fight, and she really wasn't in the mood for it. 

"You can sleep wherever you want honey." She responded, face never leaving the pillow.

"So we're just not going to talk about this then?" Mako raised his voice slightly.

'Here we go.' She signed and rolled over to meet his gaze. She made sure to keep her face blank. Her body felt heavy with the long drive and her heart just wasn't ready to dig through 6 years of grievances that she had with her beloved.

"What is there to talk about?" She asked calmly.

"You know what!" Mako jumped off the bed and rubbed his face roughly with both of his hands. "Sometimes you're just impossible!"

Asami rolled her eyes while his back was turned to her. She waited for him to continue.

"Well?" He asked after an uncomfortable period of time.

"Well?" She repeated, straining to keep her voice level. "You didn't ask me anything."

"Oh, so you're just going to pretend that you haven't been passively furious with me for telling your dad about the concert. So much so I might add that on your birthday you refused to spend any one-on-one time with me and insisted that you and Opal spend the night together as a girls only sleepover." He was pacing the room with his hands on his hips.

"Neither of us had ever had a sleepover with anyone other than our significant others." She answered. "I wanted to be a regular teenager for once." 

"That's not what I mean and you know it!" He was almost yelling now. He threw his hands in the air and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Honey…" She started before he cut her off.

"Enough with the honey shit! I know you only call me that when you're pissed off." 

"First of all-" she snapped at him. "Do not. Yell at me. Now or ever." 

Mako closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"And second, what do you want me to say? That you went behind my back and told my dad that we were going to a concert for a band that regularly sings about their hatred for the rich and constant disregard for conventional societal norms?"

"Oh, so I was just supposed to lie to him?"

"No!" She ran her hands through her long black hair. "But you didn't have to go running to him the second you knew about the concert. I was planning to break it to him easily in a way that wouldn't stress him or me out."

"Well, you could have told me that! I wouldn't have told him so soon, or at all for that matter.

"When Mako?! When I woke up you were already gone and I had 5 missed calls and 23 text messages from him asking about what was going on! You didn't even give me a chance to talk to you!" She felt the sting of tears in her nose. "You're supposed to be on my side." She stressed.

Mako's eyes widened and his entire body loosened. Asami couldn't tell what face she was making, but it must have been pretty bad if he reacted like that. She was shaking and she could feel her throat tightening and headache forming. She always was lousy at controlling herself when she got emotional.

"I'm gonna go get ready." She stood up and headed out of the room to pick up her bag. "I'm going to get ready with Opal in her suite. I'll meet you in the lobby at 8."

With that, she closed the door and walked out. Mako felt guilty that he was relieved to be away from her. He pulled out his phone and dialed Hiroshi, who answered on the first ring.

"Mako." He greeted.

"Sir. We have arrived safely and are getting settled in now." 

"Good. How is Asami? Can I talk to her?"

"She's sleeping right now." He lied. "The drive really tired her out." 

"Let her know to call me when she wakes up."

"Yes sir." Mako answered. Tensing up when he heard the soft beep indicating that Hiroshi hung up. 

"Ugh." Mako moaned. Throwing himself on the bed and tossing his phone aside. He stared up the ceiling for so long, head empty of any thought and emotion. He stared for so long that he didn't realize he fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the fastest that I've ever updated a fic! I'm having so much fun writing this that I've even started to write the next chapter. I love Asami with all my heart and soul and it's going to get so much worse before it gets better. We finally get to meet Korra in the next chapter and I'm really excited!


	3. Perfect Places

Asami turned in the full-length mirror of one of the bathrooms of Opal and Bolin's suite. After much deliberation with both Opal and Bolin, she decided on a pair of dark blue skinny jeans with a fitted long sleeve Kill the Kennedys tour tee that she bought off their website. She paired it with some cute black combat boots that she picked up in Italy last year at a Future Industries conference. She pulled on a black bomber jacket that was thick enough for the March Las Vegas nights but warm enough for a concert venue and decided to keep her long black hair down and added a maroon beanie. She added her “signature” purple eyeshadow and maroon lipstick despite telling her dad she would do her makeup differently. It was a really popular winter look, but because Asami had been seen wearing the look so much it became commonplace with a classic look that a lot of people wore year-round.

"What do you think?" She asked Opal. Eyes never leaving the mirror.

"I think it looks great!" She answered from the counter. She was rummaging through the bag Asami recognized as the gift she gave her over Christmas. "I have some earrings that I think would look amazing on you!"

"Thanks Opal! But I don't have my ears pierced." She gently reminded her.

Opal continued to search, ignoring Asami's comment. Asami went back to looking at herself in the mirror. She felt like she was getting ready for her first date again. The butterflies in her stomach were building up as each hour passed. She was finally going to get to meet KTK and almost more importantly, Korra.

"Found them!" She heard Opal cheer. 

Asami turned around to find Opal holding small jade clip-on studs. 

"Here." She handed them over with a smile. "I had them modified for you! I know you're not a jewelry person but I couldn't stop thinking about you when I saw these. They remind me of your eyes.

Asami was speechless. She held the jewelry in her right hand and caressed it with her left.

"Opal…" she whispered. "They're gorgeous." She smiled and pulled her close for an embrace. Opal returned her hug just as enthusiastically.

"You deserve something nice. Happy belated birthday Asami!" She squeezed just a bit harder.

"Thank you so much." Was all Asami could muster. It was taking all her power to keep everything together. 

She let Opal go and clipped the earrings into her ears. They were a little tight, but not enough to hurt her. She looked at the smartwatch that she kept on her wrist and called out to Bolin.

"Bolin! Can you go and see if Mako’s ready? It's 7:30. My cards in the purple bag." She adjusted her hair one more time and looked over at Opal.

"Ready to go?" She looked over at Opal and couldn't help but smile over how cute she looked in her long sleeve baby blue dress with tights underneath.

"You know it!" Opal took Asami's arm and linked hers through, making their way down to the lobby.

* * *

"Dude." Was all Bolin could say. "You really want Asami to leave you huh?"

He took a seat on a nearby chair as he watched Mako struggle to get ready. It was 7:49 as Mako tried to pull on his jeans but stomped a hole through the crotch due to his panic.

Bolin fell out of his chair, tears streaming down his cheeks. He couldn't breathe and every time he looked at Mako's sheet white face there was a new stitch added to his side.

"Fuck!" Mako scrambled over to his bag and pulled out every article of clothing in it onto the floor. Before long it looked like a bomb had gone off.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit." Mako repeated as he struggled to find a suitable replacement for his now useless jeans.

"Oh." He stopped, grabbing a pair of gray Nike sweat shorts. 

" _ Oh no."  _ The realization dawning on him.

"What?" Bolin asked, wiping the tears from his face.

"Asami took my pants." He said quietly.

"What the hell are you talking about?" 

"I didn't want to take extra luggage when Asami had so many bags so I stuffed some things in her bag and I guess she took that bag when she went over to your suite." Mako rushed through his words, leaving Bolin to decipher what he was saying. He took out his phone and nearly threw it across the room when he saw that it was 7:54 and he had a message from Asami that he was too scared to open.

"Well, it looks like you only have two options." Bolin tried to hide his smirk.

Mako glared over at him, not in the mood for his nonsense.

“Either you don’t go, Asami breaks up with you, and you live the rest of your miserable life with me and Opal.” Bolin stood up and grabbed the pair of shorts that Mako was holding. “Or you put these on and look like a fuck boy.”

Mako reached up and grabbed the shorts from his hands and hurriedly put them on.

“Asami will hate you for sure, but the chances of her dumping you are only 65% instead of 100%. Bolin headed towards the door as Mako made his way to brush his teeth. He could have suggested running to his suite across the hall, but Mako deserved to be messed with a little. Sometimes he was so dense that this was the only way to really bring him back from his own head.

* * *

  
  


“Finally! I was starting to-” Asami’s words were cut off the second she looked at Mako and realized what he was wearing, her mouth falling in a perfect O shape.

“I couldn’t find my pants, someone took them when they left,” Mako grumbled.

Asami placed the biggest smile that she could on her face and answered him in the sweetest voice she could muster. 

“I’m sorry honey. I’m glad that you were able to find clothes.” she giggled a little.

Asami hated fighting in public. Not so much because of a reputation, but more because she didn't want to make anyone else uncomfortable.

"Let's go!" Asami declared as she grabbed the other girl's hand and stepped into the brisk Nevada night.

The walk to the venue wasn't so bad. It wasn't cold enough to warrant driving and it was long enough for her the butterflies in her stomach to build back up. The cool air hit her cheeks as she was listening to Opal gush about going to her first concert. They were both sheltered as kids, both coming from prominent families so a lot of young persons' experiences escaped them. She felt grateful that she was able to share this part of her life with someone who gets her.

Once they reached the venue they didn’t have to wait for long. There was a separate entrance for them and they were escorted to their seats near the stage by the manager of the band, Tenzin, and his little helpers, who he referred to as Ikki and Meelo. Their seats were located on an elevated part of the venue to the left of the stage, making for the perfect view of the entire band. It wasn’t front and center like press or general admission, but it was perfect for them.

Meelo took to Mako right away, much to his disdain, and began to climb Mako's leg, making himself comfortable sitting on his shoe as Mako struggled to walk. Ikki and Bolin got along wonderfully and seemed to be catching up from the last time they met.

“We’re glad you could make it!” Tenzin smiled. “It’s nice to see you again Bolin”

“You too boss!” Bolin beamed a smile at him as Ikki swung from his biceps. 

Tenzin led them to their seats and motioned for them to sit.

“So who’s the birthday girl?” Tenzin asked, looking from Asami to Opal.

“Mine!” Asami raised her hand shyly. “It was on the 25th, but we’re celebrating it tonight with the concert.”

“Wonderful! Well happy birthday to you!” He smiled at her making his eyes crinkly. Although it was dark Asami could make out his tattoos vaguely. 

“I’m going to get back and prep the band to get ready, but Ikki and Meelo here will be your personal pagers. Anything you need don’t hesitate to ask them to find me. I’ll see you guys after the show.” Tenzin was off before he finished his sentence.

Asami looked over at her new tiny friends who made themselves comfortable in her little group.

“Isn’t it your bedtime or something like that?!” Mako yelled over at Meelo as he tried to fend him off from crawling all over his head.

“That stuffs for babies!” Meelo yelled. “I’m a man and men don’t have bedtimes!” 

“Did we just get used as free babysitters?” Opal whispered into Asami’s ear.

“I guess we did.” She replied thoughtlessly. “I don’t mind though.”

They settled into a comfortable silence as Asami seemed to dissociate from herself. Nothing felt real anymore. It was like she was waiting to finally wake up from this too good to be true dream in the bedroom of her little apartment on her dad's property.

The group indulged Ikki in her game of never-ending questions as Mako tried and failed to keep Meelo at bay. As more and more people started pooling into the venue it became harder to hear her friends. She was content in just listening to them, making a note of how Bolin and Opal would make great parents whenever they were ready. Mako never seemed to like children, and now with Meelo and Ikki tag-teaming him it seemed less likely to change his mind about them.

Asami was pulled out of her thoughts when she felt the weight of Meelo settling into her lap.

“You’re really pretty!” He pointed at her and grinned. “I’m going to make you my girlfriend.” He hugged her in the middle and held on to her as Mako tried to pull him off.

Asami blinked at him and gently pulled his hands away from her.

“How about you find me again in about 12 years and we’ll talk about it then, okay Meelo?” she smiled gently at him.

He smiled up at her and kissed her on the cheek before he moved over to Opal, Bolin catching him before he had the chance.

“That one is taken forever buddy!” Bolin laughed as he tried to distract Meelo.

Asami tensed up as she felt Mako move closer to her and put his arm around her, resting her head on his shoulder out of pure habit. They remained that way until the concert began, unmoving. Mako was scared if he moved too much that Asami would get off of him and Asami not feeling like she could.

Bright lights and the familiar sound of the beginning of a song from the band's new album came on. Asami stood up and leaned over the railing. 

“It's time!’ She yelled, pumping her fist in the air. 

* * *

The entire time Asami felt like she was having an out of body experience. She researched setlists from previous dates of the “Vanity Fare” album tour, but nothing prepared her for the surprise of the band playing more than their recent album to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their first album. She cried when she heard her favorite songs played, and laughed at the moments when the crowd seemed to come together to sing the fan-favorite parts of the most popular songs. She stood mesmerized as she saw Korra and Kuvira exchange knowing glances between them and when Tahno and Varrick chased each other around the stage in between songs.

She was so consumed in her own joy that she didn’t notice when Mako slipped in his own air pods to drown out the music and Bolin and Opal holding Ikki and Meelo who had both fallen asleep at some point.

When the concert ended they waited for the crowd to dissipate before they got up and looked for Tenzin so they wouldn’t have to wake the kids. Asami followed Bolin, filled with a happy buzz that she’d never felt before. Her hands were shaking and her chest felt like it was about to burst. Tenzin was waiting for them in a dimly lit hallway near the entrance they came in through earlier in the night. 

“I’m sorry about that!!” He apologized sheepishly as he took Ikki and Meelo from the married couple. “They don’t usually knock out like this. Someone-” He glanced at a girl who looked to be no older than 13. “Must have given them a lot of sugar. I’m going to go and take them to my wife, my oldest Jinora will take you to meet the band.” He balanced the children in his arms and took off without another word.

“Hi Bolin!" She greeted him. Bolin waved back.

“I’m Jinora!” She greeted the others. 

They all introduced themselves back and followed her down a maze like path nodding and waving at security and other staff members as they made their way. She was like a little tour guide talking to them about the band and what traveling with them is like. They reached a door at the end of a particularly shady looking hallway and came to a stop.

“We’re here!” Jinora smiled and turned to face them. “I’m going to warn you now, it’s really hot on stage and the band and crew sweat a lot, so it might smell like a local gym locker room. It also might feel like a really weird mix of freezing and ‘so hot I think I can see the paint peeling off of the walls.’”

They all nodded thanks for the heads up and braced themselves to go in.

‘It’s finally happening!’ Asami thought. She grabbed Mako's hand out of excitement and gave it a hard squeeze. He squeezed back gently and rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. No matter how mad they were at each other, Mako would always at least try to comfort her the few times she asked for it.

Jinora pushed on the door and held it open for all of them as they walked in. The bright fluorescent lights momentarily blinded Asami. She squinted and tried to get adjusted to the room while Bolin was getting pelted with greetings from all over the room.

“Hey guys!” He greeted them. “It’s nice to see you again. Let me introduce you to my gang.”

He wrapped his arm around Opal and pulled her close to him. 

“This little ball of sunshine and perfection is Opal, my wife.” He kissed her on the cheek and she let out a little giggle. 

“Hello!” She beamed at them as Bolin hugged her waist from behind. 

“And that tall brooding object over there is Mako, the less attractive brother.” Bolin grinned.

“Hey.” Mako greeted flatly.

Asami felt the mood in the room change slightly. Her eyes finally adjusted as she took in what was before her. Mako was standing before Tahno, the lead singer, and Varrick who played the guitar. She felt a lump start to form in her throat when she realized that they were looking at her and Mako. She let go of his hand and stuffed it into the pocket of her bomber jacket.

“And this,” He let go of Opal and made his way over to Asami. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her forward in front of the band members. “Is my sister-in-law Asami!”

“H- Hi.” Asami chuckled nervously, taking her hands out of her pocket and wiping them on her jeans. “I- ugh.” She stuttered. She felt so small standing next to the band she idolized. She promised herself she wouldn’t do this, she wasn’t going to be star-struck and act like the dumb 13-year-old she was on the inside. She let out a shaky breath and held her head up high.

“Hi!” She beamed, sounding more confident than she was. “I’m really excited to meet you guys! The concert was amazing” She complimented. “You guys are my favorite band." She kept her smile wide and hoped they wouldn't notice the panic in her eyes.

Tahno gave her a once over and licked his lips.

"You look so familiar." He said out loud to himself. He stepped closer to her and grabbed a piece of her hair.

Asami screamed internally, not daring to move. Tahno looked up to meet her eyes and smirked at her, letting go of her hair. "You got a name fangirl?"

"Asami." She fixed her hair behind her ear and bit the dead skin off her lips. 

"Asami?! Like Sato?!" Varrick all but screamed at her. He gazed at her intensely with a curious look before the light bulb in his head went off. "You just like your mom!" He grabbed her hands and pulled her towards him.

"You knew my mom?!" Asami was shocked. "How?" 

"I was but a young engineering student when I met your mom and dad, and you were about yay big" he held his arms about shoulder with wide.

Before Asami could ask, she heard a familiar voice from across the room.

"Wow Varrick. You really were a jack of all trades." Asami snapped her head up look at the most beautiful face she'd ever seen. She memorized those blue eyes that seemed to be all over her fake Instagram. She literally felt like the wind was knocked out of her. She was staring at Korra. In the flesh.

Varrick let go of her hands and she stumbled backward. All Asami could do was gawk over at her. She took off the white tank she had on during the concert and was lounging in a sports bra, all defined abs and muscular arms. She almost didn't notice Kuvira draped over Korras lap.

The only two people in the room were Asami and Korra. She couldn't see or hear what was going on around her and she missed when Kuvira called out to her the first time.

"Hey princess!" She called a little louder.

Asami turned her head to Kuvira and slowly came out of her daze.

"Ugh, yes?" She answered. She hated it when people called her that. 

"Enjoying the show?" She grinned as she looked over at Korra.

Asami blushed and crammed her hands back in her pockets. It was hot in the room and the smell was starting to get to her.

"You guys were really awesome!" She couldn't help how hot her face was or the dread she felt when the two girls in front of her shared a giggle. That's not what she meant and they all knew it.

"It's nice to meet you guys!" Korra called past Asami. Purposefully looking away from her to her friends. "Bolin." She pointed to him. "I've got a bone to pick with you." She called him over the couch she was sitting on and began to talk about something that Asami couldn't quite make out. 

She looked around the room and to her surprise it was just a big makeup room. She walked over to a mirror and pulled off her beanie. Her lipstick was smudged and her mascara and eyeliner were flaking under her eyes. 

'I guess I look as shitty as I feel.' 

She started to clean up her makeup and smooth her hair when she noticed Opal behind her. She smiled over at her and noticed she had her phone out.

"Let's take a picture." She smiled sweetly. 

Asami nodded and squatted down to Opals level, smiling brightly next to her best friend. 

"We turned out really cute!" Opal reviewed the photo and prepared to send it Asami.

"We really did." She agreed when she reviewed it on her own phone. She zoomed into the photo and noticed Bolin and Korra laughing in the background. Her eyes grew wide when she saw Korras signature crooked grin. She looked up at Opal to find her looking away with a mischievous little smile on her face.

'Oh I love her.'

Varrick picked up an acoustic guitar and waved Asami over fo where he was sitting. 

"Come here! We have a little surprise for you." He patted the seat and waited for her.

She looked around after a second and then pointed at herself.

"Me?"

"Yes you!" He rolled his eyes. "Who else would I be talking to?"

Asami felt her face get hot again as she made her way over to the chair. She took a seat as Varrick gathered the remaining people in the room over to Asami in a semi-circle.

"We heard your birthday just passed, so we wanted to sing you a happy birthday." Tahno said as he took a seat in the little coffee table in front of hers.

Asami felt her mouth go dry. She could already feel the tears welling in her eyes.

"Ready everyone?" Varrick called out? 

"Ready!" Jinora responded.

The second that they started singing Asami started sobbing, not cute Ghibli tears, but full-on hiccup cries with the snot running down her face. If she could speak she would have told Opal to stop recording her. Maybe it was for the best. Because if she was crying too hard, she didn't have to deal with the fact that Korra and Kuvira stood up and left the room. 

"Thank- hic- you!" She choked out between sobs. Asami had never been more thankful that she wore waterproof makeup.

"We don't have any cake, but I found this twinkie in my backpack." Jinora placed the half squished spongecake on her lap and patted it gently. Asami laughed and lifted it gently to her chest. 

"I appreciate it." She wiped off as much of her tears as she could before Tahno handed her a roll of brown paper towels. 

"I'm sorry princess. Did you not like it?" He teased. Asami could feel Mako's rage radiating off of him.

"No! I mean," she blotted her eyes and blew her nose as quietly as she could. "I literally did not feel like today could get any better. I never expected this to happen even in my dreams. It really means a lot that you remembered one of Bolins friends birthdays from an offhand comment that he made at an after-party.

"It's my pleasure." He took Asami's hand and placed a kiss to the back. "If there's anything else I could do to make it any better just let me know."

"Okay." Mako started. He took a step towards Tahno but was intercepted by Bolin and Opal who shook their heads at him. Mako grunted at them for a second before he crossed his arms and muttered profanities under his breath.

"And sorry about Korra and Kuvira." He seemed unfazed by Mako's outburst. "They're usually really cool but sometimes they can be real fucking rude. Especially Korra, she can be a straight bitch." 

"Ain't that the truth." Varrick agreed.

"It's no big deal." Asami lied. "Maybe they had something to take care of."

Varrick and Tahno gave each other a look and sighed. Tahno turned back to her and started to say something before Korra and Kuvira came back into the room followed by a short woman in round glasses.

She introduced herself as Zhu Li, Varrick's wife. Korra and Kuvira settled down in their spot picked up their conversation with Bolin like nothing happened. 

"So you're not going to apologize for just walking out." Tahno walked over to Korra and leaned over her.

"What do I have to say sorry for? The princess got her wish. What did she need me for?" 

"You don't mind, do you princess?" Kuvira looked over at her with a condescending look.

"It's okay!" Asami said through gritted teeth. She didn't notice that her legs were bouncing. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

"See?" Korra stood two inches from Tahno's nose. "The princess doesn't mind." 

Tahno barked a laugh in her face a took a step back.

"Whatever." 

The room became thick and uncomfortable. Asami shrugged off her jacket in as little movement as she could and as quietly as possible. This whole thing was because of her after all. She felt a dread deep in her stomach and she felt like she was having trouble breathing. She couldn't stand being there anymore. She wanted to get up and run back to her hotel room. 

The door opened and everyone looked up to see Tenzin with a cart of beer. 

"Good work everyone!" He called out. "It's time to relax before we head back home."

The band cheered and thanked Tenzin. Jinora hugged her dad goodnight and slipped out after waving her goodbyes to everyone else in the room

Asami thanked Tenzin for handing her a beer and thanked the universe that he showed up when he did. The group fell back into comfortable conversation with each other, even Mako seemed to be having a good time talking to Kuvira and Tahno. Asami tried to join in with Korra and Bolin's conversation but was almost always ignored by Korra or responded to in short answers. Korra never once made eye contact with her. Asami kept drinking until she no longer felt like crawling into a hole and sleeping for a few years. She started feeling weightless when it was decided that they would call it quits for the night. They said their goodbyes, Tahno exchanged numbers with Bolin and Asami, and Opal exchanged numbers with Korra and Kuvira.

Mako was just about passed out at this point. He was always bad at holding his liquor. Opal was the only sober one with the good enough sense to call a rideshare for the 2 minute drive. Asami pulled herself together long enough to call her dad to tell him goodnight and hung up before he could ask any questions. She wasn't in the mood to talk about her day or the concert. 

Once Asami got to their suite and dumped Mako on the couch. She showered quickly and skipped over her nightmare routine. She felt her buzz fading and she wanted to fall asleep before she had the chance to think about her feelings. 

She closed the door to the room and buried herself in the heavy duvet and pillows. Mako being too drunk to bother her was a blessing in disguise.

'What did I do to make her hate me so much?'

Enveloped in darkness, Asami was finally able to rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was over 4k words and I wrote it all over the course of a day. The story is really starting to come together for me. 
> 
> I love Asami so much and it hurts to see her hurt, but I promise it will get better. 
> 
> Quick note: I've been updating this story every few days and while I still plan on updating frequently, I'm going to be taking a short break for kinktober 2020. I've always wanted to participate so this is my chance to do it!
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you like it!"


	4. Release

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami and Mako have an important talk.

The next morning was better than Asami expected it to be.

Mako was supremely hungover and couldn't move. Opal and Bolin were perfect as per usual. And besides being the tiniest bit hungover, Asami felt fine. She ordered room service brunch to her room and ate in silence while she thought about the previous night. 

She had always admired Korra. Always. She was the kind of no-bullshit girl that Asami always wanted to be, but never had the courage to. She never hid herself from the media or even cared what they were publishing about her. She was just a really kind person always helping out at animal shelters and donating money to charities. The drummer did all of this out of the public eye. The only reason anyone ever knew about it was when paparazzi would spot her or if any of her ex-girlfriends talked.

There was probably more to her than Asami knew. She just didn't think it was being downright mean to fans for no discernible reason. 

Asami's phone buzzed beside her and she picked it up absent-mindedly.

Tahno ❤🥰😚

_ I assume you got home okay? _

_ You probably fell asleep so I'll leave you alone _

_ For now  _ 😏

Asami giggled and rolled her eyes. She was so distraught over Korra that she ignored Tahno's late-night messages. Deciding to respond to him later, she locked her phone and tossed it over her shoulder, satisfied when she heard the soft ‘thump’ of it hitting a pillow. She continued to eat in silence until she ran out of food.

_ Oh _ . She suddenly realized.

_ Oh shit.  _ She bolted out of her bed so fast that she didn't notice that she dropped her tray of empty dishes all over the floor.

Mako was drunker than he ever had been in his life and Asami didn't even take the time to check on him. What if he threw up and choked on his own vomit? What if he got up and fell and cracked his skull? She ran into the seating area and found him in the exact same position that she left him in when she got back and quietly walked up to him. She hovered a finger under his nose and once she felt his breathing she stroked his cheek with the back of her hand until he opened his mouth. A wave of morning breath mixed with dehydrated hangover hit her. She looked at his mouth quickly and made a note of his empty mouth.

Relief coursed through her veins as she sank to her knees thanking every deity that Mako didn't die. A wave of nausea hit her almost immediately and she laid down with her back to the floor next to Mako. She breathed through her nose as she felt the pain spread from the back of her head to behind her eyes. Applying pressure to her temples only helped a little. She took deep breaths and willed herself better. Somewhere along the line, she must have fallen asleep again because the next thing she knew Mako stepped on her waist in a hungover stupor.

“What the fuck!” She wheezed. She couldn’t breathe as she rolled over on all fours and coughed as Mako ignored her.

She continued to try to catch her breath as Mako cleaned up.

The clothes from last night that she forgot to change out of were clinging to her. The grime of last night's fun and failures felt like they had melted into her skin.

Asami took care to get up slowly and walk to a bathroom in the back part of the suite to clean herself up.

She turned the water as hot as it would go and stood under the spay, hopefully baptizing her into a new person. She and Mako had fights, but even those didn’t make her feel as bad as Korra did last night. Maybe that had more to say about her relationship than she really cared to explore. The fact that a complete stranger could get to her more than Mako did was not a good sign.

Why did it matter if a girl that Asami never met didn’t like her? Not everyone you met was bound to like you. She learned that at an early age when the same newspaper published think pieces on her. One saying that she handled her mother's death well while the other completely dehumanizing her because she didn’t cry at the funeral.

That night she cried alone in her room wishing that she could have been the one taken instead of her mother. She was always the brightest one in her classes at every public school her parents enrolled her in. When she asked to be pulled from a formal class setting in favor of a private homeschool education and working with her dad, it wasn’t because she wanted better, it was because it would feel less lonely than going back to school where people were too intimidated to even look at her.

The entire bathroom was covered in steam and she scrubbed her body until her skin screamed and she was bright red. The makeup proof face that she was always so careful about all but melted off in the steam. Brushing her hair out felt cathartic, she let it stick to her back as she emptied her mind of Korra and replaced it with good memories of the night.

Listing them in her head as the water ran over her felt like the only way to ground herself.

_ Getting ready with Opal _

_ Walking to the concert on a nice night _

_ Getting to see Kill the Kennedys _

_ Meeting Ikki, Jinora, and Meelo _

_ Meeting Tenzin _

_ Meeting Korra (Even if she did hate her) _

_ Meeting Tahno _

_ Meeting Varrick _

_ Making friends with Tahno _

_ Drinking with great company _

She felt a smile growing on her lips

_ Getting home safely _

_ Sleeping soundly _

_ Eating a great breakfast _

_ Getting to shower _

Turning off the water and wrapping herself in plush towels, she made her way towards the room she slept in the night before. She stopped as she saw Mako getting dressed, she walked in silently and grabbed her things as fast as she could to change in another room.

“Where are you going?” He asked her.

“To get ready.”

He stared at her for a few seconds and turned back to put his pants on. The fact that he never lotioned up made her irrationally angry.

“You can change here. There's nothing I haven’t seen before.”

Asami blinked at him. It’s been over 6 months since the last time they were together like that. She opened her mouth to say something when she heard her phone ding. Before she could make a move Mako reached over and unlocked her phone.

Mako knitted his brows and his face transformed into a snarl.

“What the hell Asami?! Kissy face and love emoji?!” 

She huffed and rolled her eyes, forgetting the stuff that she came to grab.

“Can we not start the day off like this? It was bad enough that you stepped on me and didn’t even apologize or ask if I was okay.”

“The day started off bad when you left me on the couch. Don’t pretend I did this.”

“Whatever.” She muttered. She grabbed the closest shirt and shorts she could find and elected to ignore her underwear. The faster she left the better.

“Where are you going?!” 

Asami turned to look at him.

“Do. Not. Yell. At. Me.”

“I. Wasn’t. Yelling.” He mimicked. “I just want to know why my girlfriend is texting other men. Seems suspicious to me. I don’t know what makes me more mad, the fact that you knew who I was walking about when before I even said his name or the fact that you’re mad at  _ me. _ He took a step towards her and squared his shoulders.

She wanted to laugh.

“ _ Your  _ girlfriend?” She repeated. Her hair was starting to dry at the roots and was dripping onto the carpet. Her hands were trembling.

“I don’t belong to you Mako. I never have and I never will. Plus, the fact that you feel you have the right to look at my phone is disgusting.”

This is not how this vacation was supposed to go.

“I made a friend. He put his number in my phone and then he asked if I got home alright. It's not that deep."

“You have friends Asami.” He almost spat. "It's just disrespectful is all. How would  _ you  _ feel if some girl put her number in my phone like that?"

_ How  _ would  _ she feel? Her lack of care alarmed her. _

She stayed silent and looked at the floor.

Mako sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Asami…" He started. "What's going on?" 

The bed squeaked as he sat down, defeated.

There was something wrong. Wrong with the past year, wrong with the relationship, and wrong with Asami. It was something that she thought about constantly but didn't know how to address.

Resentment.

It was resentment.

It was the fact that her whole life was planned for her since before she was conceived. Working with her father. Being the perfect child. Dating who her father chose for her. May her mother rest in peace, but even she wasn’t much better. Having an incredible amount of privilege that she'll never be able to repay no matter how hard she tried. Constantly feeling like you have to live up to a standard that you helped create. It was like standing on a stool with a tightening noose. 

It was exhausting.

Her chest tightened and her nose began to sting.

"Not now Mako." 

She turned to leave and left Mako's hand on her shoulder.

"It's always 'not now' with you Asami. When will ‘ _ now’  _ be? Because there is never going to be a perfect time."

"How about when I'm not naked and wrapped in a towel?"

She shook his hand off and continued to walk towards the door. 

She'd never felt more vulnerable. It'd been ages since Mako had seen her fresh out of a shower. Even then they’d been in a better place. Everything was new and exciting, now the smile and worry lines were beginning to show and she lost the energy to keep up with her faked confidence.

"You're going to regret it if you walk out now."

Her eyes went wide. She turned her head slowly until she was looking at him.

"Did you just  _ threaten _ me?" 

"No! See, this is what I mean. You're taking everything the wrong way and we can't even talk because you just walk away. You can't handle conflict even if it'll lead us to fix things."

_ Well shit. _

Asami was completely dry now and her towel was struggling to cling to her body. 

"Let me change. Order some room service and we'll talk it out once I'm done okay?"

A small smile broke Makos' otherwise serious face.

"Dessert too?"

She couldn't help but return the smile.

"Dessert too."

Mako stood up and left the room so Asami could change in peace.

The second he felt the room she let out a sigh and got to work getting changed.

She took her time and even responded to Tahno who thanked her for the night and apologized for Korra again. 

Once she was ready she made her way to the seating area where her food and her boyfriend were waiting for her.

"I order you the noodles. I know that's your favorite."

"Thanks." Grabbing her bowl, she took a seat in an armchair next to Mako. She crossed her legs up on the chair and got comfortable.

"So…" Mako started.

"So…"

He sighed and put down his rice bowl.

"I love you Asami."

She took a big bite of food and nodded her head.

_ But… _

"I want to know how to fix us. Do you hate me? Do you even want to be with me anymore?"

"Wow. Were really starting off strong."

"Don't change the subject."

She stared at her bowl.

The sun was shining in and painted the room in gold light. A home renovation show played in the background on a low volume.

"I don't hate you, Mako." She finally said.

She sighed and put down her bowl with a clink.

"We were 19 when we got together. I'm not the same person I was then and neither are you. Do  _ you _ hate  _ me _ ? Do  _ you _ even want to be with  _ me?  _ Or do you want to make my dad happy by being with me?"

The words stung and Asami almost regretted saying it.

Almost.

Mako and Bolin lost their parents when they were young. They always had each other and little else. Mako doesn't talk much about his life before he met Asami, but it couldn't have been easy. Loss never came easy to anyone, let alone him. 

It was like Mako saw a father figure in Hiroshi. Always unsaid and always there.

Asami never dared to bring it up because it didn't matter. Hiroshi never seemed to regard Mako as anything more than the bodyguard he hired all those years ago.

It had to hurt Mako. He always sought his attention, but it would never be returned. In fact, the harder Mako tried, the less Hiroshi cared.

Mako stayed silent for so long that Asami was scared to look up and see his face.

It seemed like neither of them were going to get by unscathed tonight.

Good thing she turned off her phone.

"I love you." He finally broke the silence.

"You and I both know that's not the only thing that matters in a relationship. You're the one that wanted to have this talk."

He shoved the food around the food in his bowl.

That could only mean two things. Either Mako was full, or he lost his appetite.

The second  _ never  _ happens, even when he got food poisoning and he was throwing up everything in his stomach.

Tonight was not going to be fun.

"Are you happy?" He asked quietly.

They both knew the answer to that.

"I haven't been happy for a long while, Mako."

It hurt to admit, but there was a sweet release of being able to say it out loud, like a huge weight was lifted off of her shoulders.

"Are you happy?" 

Mako always had a response for everything. But not tonight.

"No." It was a whisper.

She should have been crying. Tears should have been pouring out of her face and onto her hands. 

But the only two things she felt were relief and guilt.

"Where do we go from here?" It was weird that she was suddenly leading the conversation.

Mako took a deep breath and looked into her eyes intensely.

"Somethings not working."

"No." She agreed.

She went back to eating her noodles. There was so much she wanted to say.

"You're my home. I had nothing before I met you."

"Thanks to my dad. I have nothing to offer without him."

His chest tightened. The sun was starting to go down and he suddenly realized he couldn't see her very well.

"What's one thing that you like about  _ me _ ? I'm not talking about physical things or something like a job. What is it about  _ me _ that you like so much?" 

"You're unyieldingly selfless for one. So much so that people take advantage of that. People like Tahno maybe?"

"You can't just give me a backhanded compliment Mako. I asked what you like about me not 'what makes you suspicious?'" She air quoted the last part with her free hand.

"Sorry." She crossed his arms over his chest and looked away.

"Are you cheating on me?" It took a while for her to register what he asked.

An angry laugh crawled its way out of her throat. Tears were spilling from her eyes and she grabbed her side.

_ Oh, this is not going to end well. _

"What's so funny?" He narrowed his eyes.

"With what  _ time _ Mako?!" She got out between breaths. Her sides were starting to hurt and she was scared if she stopped that it was going to get ugly. "You're literally with me  _ every  _ second of  _ every  _ day. I cannot get away from you and you even read through my messages. I don't talk to anyone but you, your brother, and his wife."

The laughter stopped abruptly and Mako felt his heart sink. He'd never seen her mood change so suddenly.

"Even when I want to have a second to sit and collect my thoughts you're  _ always _ there. Ever since my dad hired you you've been there and I don't know how to get rid of you for  _ five  _ minutes!"

_ That came out wrong _ .

Or maybe it didn't. Even so, there were no regrets about what she said.

Mako's mouth formed a perfect 'o' and he leaned back on the couch.

"Wow. I didn’t know you felt that way." He breathed.

It needed to be said.

"Thanks for that I guess."

" _ You're  _ the one that wanted to talk. You knew what this was going to be and you still chose to do it."

"Yeah, but you don't have to be cruel. You basically told me you don't want to be with me."

The urge to throw her bowl at him overcame her. She put it down and pushed it away from her so it was out of reach.

"That's not what I said, Mako. Did you think that this little talk was going to be about how there was another person and I would say sorry and this would magically get fixed? This isn't a movie, this is real life and I'm a person with feelings and thoughts."

"Maybe not another person…" He mumbled.

Asami's eye twitched and she fought the urge to walk away.

He always only answered part of the question, the part that was most beneficial to him of course.

"Before we left for the concert, you said something like 'you're never on my side.' What did you mean?"

_ Now we're getting somewhere. _

"Whenever I want to do something, like go to a concert for example, you always have to report to my dad. You two completely leave me out of the conversation. I can't just say 'I want to do X' without you two deciding if it's okay.."

He looked straight ahead and breathed out of his nose.

"I'm sorry." His jaw tightened.

Asami knew that he was holding back a tantrum.

"We just want to keep you safe."

"And I understand that. But I could have told my dad about the concert myself."

"So you're mad about the concert?"

"It's not  _ just _ about the concert Mako!" She sucked in a breath and pinched the bridge of her nose. "It's about you constantly doing this to me. It's like I have no say in my life or my relationships without you or my father having a stake in it."

"Of course we have a stake in it! We're your family."

"Not like that!" 

It was hard not to name call. She wouldn't get anywhere with that.

"I'm not asking you to lie, I'm not asking you not to have opinions, I'm just asking you not to make decisions for me."

Mako was silent. There was nothing to say.

"Do you understand?"

"Sure. I'm sorry."

Maybe it was the way he crossed his legs. Maybe it was the way he looked away. Maybe it was the fact that he muttered it and offered the apology as a means to an end. Whatever it was made Asami see red.

It was night now and the only source of light in their hotel was the flickering T.V. on mute. Back to the Future was playing on some random channel. It must have been changed sometime during their talk.

"Mako…"

She was struggling to stay calm. 

_ I think it's time. _

"I think we need to break up."

The words came out easier than she thought they would. Relief instantly rushed through her.

"Woah okay." Mako stiffened up and put his hands up in front of his body. "I don't think this is the time to make jokes."

"This isn't a joke Mako."

She got up and turned on the lights. It was easier to hide in the dark, but this was something that she felt would be easier seen.

His eyes followed her until she sat down.

"What are you talking about? It's just a rough patch. It'll pass soon."

"A rough patch for the past year?"

He glared at her.

"No relationship is perfect. We can work through this. There's no reason to break up."

"I don't need a reason to end things other than the fact that neither of us is happy anymore. I love you Mako and I think- no, I  _ know _ I always will. But I don't think I can continue like this."

His heart sank to his stomach. The anger he felt was replaced by dread. It felt like he swallowed stones.

"If that's what you want." He looked away and stood up.

A wave of exhaustion hit her as she watched Mako make his way to the door.

"I'm gonna stay with Bolin for the night." 

She didn't have a chance to respond before he slammed the door behind him.

Surrounded by nothing but artificial light was suffocating. She made her way to the room she was using and buried herself in a never-ending sea of comforters and pillows until she felt as safe and secure as she could.

Then the tears came.

Tears for the relationship she was glad to be out of. Tears for the loss of her best friend since she was 19. Tears for the pain she caused Mako. Tears for the disappointment she caused her father. Tears for the fact that she not only probably lost Mako, but Bolin and Opal too.

It was unbearable. She was openly weeping. Her chest burned and everything was wrong.

She was shattering.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was not supposed to end this way. It got really long so I decided to cut it here. It gets better I promise.
> 
> I said slowburn and I guess I meant slowburn. I know I said I would pause for kinktober but this story called back to me. I think it's going to be way longer than I originally intended.


	5. Trapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cw. Claustrophobia, trapped in an elevator

In romance comedies, after a breakup, all of the protagonists' friends surround her with undying love until she comes back stronger and finds a better man than the one that broke her heart. Asami didn't have that.

Or at least, she didn't think that she did.

Opal came in first, crept into her room, spooned her, and pet her hair as she sobbed. She whispered sweet words into her ear as she reminded her of how much they loved her.

"It's okay Asami. It's okay to feel like it's falling apart like the world is ending. Even if it is, I'm going to hold you until it's over."

Then Opal left and she felt more empty than she had before she came in. Not a second later she felt the weight on her bed shift and a large calloused hand rubbing small soothing circles on her back. She buried her face in the comforter, it didn't matter if she couldn't breathe. The only thing that made her cry harder than losing her family, was realizing that they were there for her no matter what, with or without the one who brought them together. Showing her emotions so blatantly in front of others was hard for Asami. It wasn't about being strong or resilient, she just didn't want to bother anyone with her feelings. Even when her mom died she knew she had to be strong for her dad. 

It seemed like she was always acting strong. Eventually, it just became a part of her personality, acting strong, acting like it was okay for life to throw anything at her because she could deal with it brilliantly. Just because she could handle it, doesn’t mean she should have to. 

She cried until she was asleep, she couldn’t even remember how it happened. One second she was there and the other second she just wasn’t. Before she knew it, she was packing her bags alone in her suite. It somehow felt colder. Bolin said it was his idea to get a separate car to drive with Mako, something about quality brother time. Opal said that it was an opportunity to hang out with Asami one on one again, but she knew that it was probably Mako's idea. They didn’t push her to talk, in fact, no one spoke of that night again. A cloud hung over their group as Asami loaded up her car with Opal and took off with the boys trailing behind her. Not one word was said between them. Asami focused her gaze at the road the entire time and went into autopilot.

Before she knew it she was pulling up into her driveway and greeting her dad. He questioned her dark circles and lack of makeup, but she played it off that it was how she always looked without makeup. Men were easy to lie to. She hated to do it, but she would hate to talk about her love life with her dad more. No matter how hard it was or how she was feeling, she knew she made the right decision. 

* * *

“Um, are you sure sir?” Mako stared at Hiroshi.

“Incredibly.” He crossed his arms and stared at Asami who was staring right back at him, gobsmacked.

"What?!" She stood up and slammed her hands down on his desk.

They decided to tell their dad about the breakup together, considering that Mako was still officially her bodyguard. It was awkward walking to his office together, but it was for the best. It took a week to muster up the courage to tell him. She couldn't even look him in the eye leading up to it and now she was openly hysteric.

"You're _really_ going to make him do this?!" Mako turned to look at her, arms across his chest and shoulders tense. 

"I don’t mind, Asami." His eyes were soft and his shoulders loosened ever so slightly.

Out of all the ways that this could have gone, Hiroshi asking Mako to stay on as a bodyguard and fake boyfriend was not one of them.

"I don't want people to know that you two broke up. We had a good thing going and you were safe whenever you went anywhere."

Asami bit her tongue and sank back into her seat next to Mako. She'd never gotten in trouble in a formal school setting before, but she imagined this is what it felt like, defeated and at a loss for words.

"It's okay Asami." He whispered to her.

She was glad Mako could stick around as a bodyguard, him leaving because of the breakup was never an option. He was good at his job and as much as she didn't want to be with him, she never wanted him out of her life period. They were better friends. But fake boyfriend? It sounded like a cute romance troupe, had it not been implemented after they actually broke up.

"Dad…" 

"Asami, this is for the best. I'm not going to ask why you made this decision, all I'm asking for is that you do this for me."

Asami let out a breath through her nose and nodded, looking away. It was always Hiroshi asking for just _one_ thing. It never actually was one thing.

If he wanted this from her, it didn't mean she had to comply. The most outrageous form of rebellion that Asami had in her was sneaky defiance When her dad stopped letting her eat instant ramen because he said it was bad for her, she just stopped eating it until she moved out of the main house and into her own apartment. Her dad never visited after she started dating Mako, probably because he was afraid of walking in on them doing something. You can't come to terms with your daughter growing up if you deny her the right to do so.

The day she got her own place, she ate so many noodles, she got sick and couldn't eat them for months. So that was how she was going to handle it, she wasn't going to go out, and she wasn't going to need to pretend to still be with Mako.

"Okay." She smiled at her dad and stood up, hugging him before she and Mako left the office.

She and Mako walked side by side until they left the main house and continued the walk to Asami's apartment. It was decided that Mako was going to continue to live on the property, but not in the same apartment as Asami.

"So…" Mako looked away from her. "Who's going to tell Bolin that we broke up?"

Asami stopped dead in her tracks and stared at Mako as he continued walking. It took him a minute to notice she stopped and jogged back to her.

"Mako, tell me you told them the night that we _actually_ broke up. In Vegas." She spoke carefully like he would run away if she moved suddenly. Or maybe she would kill him, whichever came first.

"No?" He took a step back. 

Asami rolled her eyes and continued walking ahead of him. Not caring if he caught up.

"What the hell happened that night then?" 

He hustled to her, careful to keep a respectable distance.

"I went over and I was upset. I said that you were upset too and that's when Opal went to check on you. They didn't really ask any questions after that."

Of course now, out of _all_ the times Mako talked for her, _now_ he didn't have anything to say. No wonder they comforted her, they didn't know what really happened. Her stomach was in knots as she reached her front door and pushed it open. She made a beeline for her closet and shut herself in. As she stood in front of the mirror, she noted how sunken in her face looked, the contrast of purple under her eyes against her pale skin, and her unwashed hair. Mako was knocking on the door and asking Asami to come out, not daring to walk in. 

The nerves under her skin began to tingle and her chest tightened. Everything was suddenly going too fast and she couldn't keep her thoughts in order. Without thinking she started to undress and tore through her closet to find her favorite pair of tights and sports bra. She grabbed her well-worn shoes and laced them up as tight as they would go.

"I'm going to go for a run." She opened the door and stepped passed Mako.

"Go ahead and grab your stuff. I'm probably going to be a while."

"I'll go with you." Mako made a beeline for his shoes but stopped when Asami walked out of the room.

"Don't bother. I'll talk to you later." 

Mako stared at her as she walked away and didn't move until he heard the front door shut.

Laying down on the bed. He looked around and noticed the pictures of all of their travels that decorated the four walls. Asami never ran, but when she did she always overdid it. Mako had a good while before she would be back. He grabbed a few bags and began to thrust his clothes into them, even after 7 years together, he had nothing to show for it. All the furniture in their home was hers. Technically, everything he owned was because of Asami. Hiroshi was technically the one who signed his paycheck. His chest tightened as he packed the photos on the walls. She wouldn't care if he took them anyway.

The next 6 months felt like a monotonous blur. After Mako moved out she hardly ever saw him, even if he was her neighbor. She spent more hours working with her dad and more hours running. Those were the only times she didn't feel like her life was falling apart.

Nights were the worst. It just reminded her of how little she talked to anyone else. Mako must have told Bolin and Opal after all. The messages were non-stop in the beginning even when she was ignoring them. After a while, they died down until she stopped opening them all together. How could she possibly face them when she was the one who decided to end it. Sure, she might have not been happy with Mako, and yeah, maybe she was starting to hate him, but at least he afforded her a family. Failures did not define a person, but hers seemed to outline her life post-Mako. She couldn't face them, she did this and she needed to handle it on her own before she dragged them into it.

After a particularly long day, she could feel her brain shutting off. Slamming face first into her bed and starting to drift off. She heard her phone go off and judging by the tone, it was a text. She debated reviewing it now versus after she woke up, after a moment she finally decided to look at it and was surprised to see it was Tahno.

Waking up, she bolted upwards and crossed her legs, trying not to seem eager by responding too fast. She was excited to talk to someone who didn't work for her.

Tahno ❤🥰😚:

_Hey gorgeous! I'm sure you know about Bolin's new movie coming out. Am I going to get to see you at the premiere?_

Did Bolin have a new movie? She really was the worst friend.

Me:

 _Hi! I've been really busy so I haven't had time to talk about it. I guess that's a no from me haha_ 😅 

Tahno ❤🥰😚:

 _Boo! Well we can't have that can we? Come and hang out with me as my date_ 😏

Date? Why the hell would he even be there?

Me:

_You're going to the premiere? As a guest? Are plus ones allowed?_

Tahno ❤🥰😚:

 _We're on the soundtrack! Guests of honor if you will_ 😌💅 

Asami giggled as his other message came in.

Tahno ❤🥰😚:

_So is that a yes? We can have a Vegas 2.0 with more fun_

It had been 6 months since she'd last gone out. She'd even stopped cooking, electing to have all her meals delivered the times she was hungry. Avoiding her dad and Mako was a job in itself. You know what? A date couldn't hurt. She'd get to hang out with her favorite band again. The breakup basically made her teen angst Asami again. Not even Korra could ruin the good feelings that their music brought her.

Me:

 _I would love to be your date_ ❤

His replay came seconds later.

Tahno ❤🥰😚:

_Yes!_

_No issues with loverboy??_

Me:

_Don't worry about him._

Asami turned her phone to do not disturb and knocked out the second she hit her pillow. Complete darkness filled her until she woke up. She didn't dream anymore. It wasn't like she was dreaming all the time before she was sad, but at least she'd remember glimpses of another life every now and again. But now, she couldn't recall anything.

Buying a dress for the premiere was harder than she thought it was going to be. First, she googled the movie and the themes surrounding it. Then she looked up interviews with all of the cast and crew (minus Bolin) that she could. And lastly, she watched the original from 1954 but fell asleep halfway. In the end, she decided to go with a red dress that she was eyeing online. It was a little more risqué than she usually went, with no sleeves, a mock neck, and a little dip in the front, but it was by no means scandalous. She smirked to herself thinking about the heart attack she would give her dad.

Telling him was a whole different story. He didn't think it was becoming of a lady to attend a movie premiere. It wasn't her place to try and be a celebrity like other daughters of wealthy businessmen. She was different, she had brains and cared about her family, not fame. That's what he said anyway. Asami hated being the model example for the heiresses. They always resented her for it, making it even harder for her to make friends. Only making nice when they needed something from her or her dad. It was only okay to be like them when it benefitted him of course. Like when she has to do public appearances for charity or commercials for the company. After about an hour of nodding her head innocently, she looked away and faked a pained expression.

"I know dad. I just thought that, with the breakup being so hard on me, I could go out and hang out with my friends again. Mako would be there too."

Hiroshi's mouth tightened into a thin line and remained quiet for a minute. He played with his beard absentmindedly as he came to a conclusion.

"Fine." He breathed hard. "Just please be safe and text me as much as you can."

Asami grinned to herself when her father wasn't looking and fixed it to a sad nod when he turned to her.

"Thanks, dad." She gave him a sad smile and stood up to hug him before she walked out.

The worst part of it all was that Mako had to accompany her to the premiere. It wasn't a real date, she called all of her nights with Opal a date after all. Thinking about it made her sad again. She was having a fun time out with a friend, but she still didn't want it to hurt him by making him see her with another guy.

The location wasn't too far from her and the ride there wasn't as awkward as she thought it would be. Work took up most of her time and Mako slept the entire way. The premiere seemed to be really small, smaller than Asami had seen them be on T.V. There was mostly crew running around, and while there was a lot of press, nothing to the extent that she thought there would be. She spotted Taho in the waiting room before they were all set to walk the carpet and greeted him with a kiss on the cheek.

"You are breathtaking." He took her hand and spun her around slowly.

"You don't look bad yourself, Mr. Down with Capitalism."

He was wearing a plain black suit with a red tie to match Asami's dress. His signature wavy hair was tamer than its usual frizzy mess and his makeup was especially well done, eyeliner and all.

"I stand by it. No matter what _anyone_ says." He turned his head in the direction of the rest of the band members. Her stomach was in knots as she realized Korra was there, making it obvious she was trying her best to ignore Tahno. If she was being honest, she hadn't thought about Korra or their interaction in months, so why did she feel like she suddenly swallowed a million rocks? Mako stood by close and avoided looking at anyone but Asami. He was dressed in a black shirt and black jeans.

Asami sat and talked with Tahno and Varrick for a while before it was time for the red carpet. They all lined up and made their way one by one and started to answer questions from the press. Bolin and Opal waved to her from the front of the line and Asami waved back shyly. She'd hoped that they wouldn't ambush her, not like this while she's literally with another guy. Even if it wasn't like that. She could feel Mako staring at her from the designated spot for security. Tahno squeezed her hand reassuringly and led her forward until it was their turn to walk through the flashes and press.

She was immediately blinded by the lights and grabbed hold of Tahno, lacing her arm through his and trying to subdue the panic that she left. This was _nothing_ like charity events. For one, there was never paparazzi there. Usually, her dad's PR would get the questions in advance so she had the chance to craft her answers. She almost didn't hear the questions being thrown at her.

"Asami, did you and your bodyguard break up?"

"Asami, are you and Tahno dating?"

"Asami, is this your public acting debut?"

"Asami, who are you wearing?"

Tahno was completely ignored and Asami had never been more grateful than ever at the amount of security that surrounded her. She grinned nervously as she posed for pictures with Tahno and made their way to the entrance of the theater. The press continued to follow her until they were stopped and returned to their posts. Her company's PR rep was going to have a field day with this one.

The theater was a large room with intricately carved baroque architecture in the beams and walls. Black and red covered the walls with touches of gold surrounding the curtain. There weren't as many people as she thought there would be, mostly the main cast and production crew like producers and musicians. That's what Tahno told her anyways. Work never allowed her to keep up with movies and Bolin was never one to force anyone to watch them. She suddenly wished that she'd taken the chance to watch his movies with him before this mess.

The usher led them to their seats near the back close to the aisle and they took a seat. Tahno was, surprisingly, a calm presence during the entire fiasco. He didn't make much conversation, but that was exactly what Asami needed at the moment. Being so close to everyone was making her head spin, so when the movie started and all she could see was Bolin, she needed a breather. 

"I'm going to run to the bathroom really quick." She leaned over to Tahno and whispered just loud enough for him to hear. Mako was so invested in the movie that he wasn't paying attention to her.

"Do you need some company?"

She shook her head and stood up as softly as she could, standing on the tips of her toes and walking out as quickly as she could to avoid making any noise. Her head was spinning and her vision was starting to blur. Everything was so hot. Sweat gathered on her forehead as she took shaky steps towards the elevator. The building had access to the roof and she needed some air _now._ Sounds were muffled and she felt numb. This didn't feel real, _she_ didn't feel real.

After an eternity the elevator doors opened and she made her way in, not noticing that Korra was also there when they closed, jumping up and bumping her elbow along the walls. The pain was blunt and she nursed it in her hand. After a second she moved to push the button to the top floor. 

"Fancy meeting you here." Asami smiled.

Korra nodded at her, never looking away from her phone. At least she acknowledged her this time. The elevator began to move slowly and creaked loudly. There weren't many floors, and they were somewhere on a middle floor, so it shouldn't take too long to reach the top. She glanced over at Korra and exhaled shakily.

"So… come here often?" She smiled weakly.

Korra looked up at her with a blank expression and turned back to her phone. So much for being a smooth operator. Backing into the opposite wall, she got comfortable as she could in the cramped space. Every so often the elevator dinged indicating each passing floor. Since Korra didn't move to choose her own floor, it was safe to assume that they were going to the same place.

"So… um…" Asami stumbled through her words. The only thought in her brain was making enough noise to fill the hollow box they were standing in.

"Stop." Korra looked straight at her.

Asami stopped breathing. Never in her life had she seen eyes so blue, never were there eyes so angry with her.

"You don't have to talk to me and I don't have to listen. We're not friends, and we never will be."

Asami's eyes never left hers. Had she heard her correctly? Korra snapped her head back down to her phone and the only noise in the air was the elevator struggling to rise to their destination. Dread and shame filled in Asami's chest. She hunched over slightly and turned from Korra, hoping to hide her hurt and disappointment. 

The elevator came to a sudden halt and they both looked up, confused that they weren't at the top yet. Maybe someone was going to get on? They waited for a few seconds before the elevator jolted again and seemed to swing. 

"What the hell?" Korra murmured under her breath and moved from her corner to press at the top floor button.

Nothing happened. Korra pushed the button with more force and eventually started pressing the open door button. When nothing happened she started smashing her palms on the entire control board.

"Um, Korra?" 

"Shut up!" Korra continued to press the buttons.

Asami closed the gap between them in two steps and pressed the emergency button, waiting for it to come on.

"Piece of _shit_!" Korra kicked below the board and the lights flickered off, causing both of them to tense. 

"Korra…" It was barely above a whisper as if talking any louder would break everything.

"Shut up, Asami!" The words were forced, scared almost. Korra moved towards the control panel and the elevator shook.

"Stop!" Asami squeaked. 

The elevator swung back and forth as Korra lifted her leg to stand back. 

Then, all hell broke loose. The elevator rattled as it spiraled down the building, lights flashing off and surrounding them in complete darkness. Before Asami knew it, they were a bundle of tangled limbs, arms intertwined and heads crouched in crooks of necks. The sound of screeching metal too loud in her ears to hear Korra's screaming. Eyes closed tightly she held onto Korra even as the elevator, after an eternity, came to a jolt. 

They were suspended in the air, nothing but the sound of creaking and their contained, labored breathing echoed throughout their death cage. They were both shaking, too scared to let the other go. After what she assumed was a few minutes, Asami slowly loosened her grip on Korra, noting relief in her joints. Korra did not budge, keeping Asami close.

“Don’t move.” Korra whispered. Asami almost missed it and tightened her grip once again.

They stayed like that for a long time. Asami felt a sense of calm wash over her, slowly, her breathing returned to normal and noticed the scent of broken, fried machinery in the air. The adrenaline was wearing off and she was acutely aware of Korra's vice grip on her, trembling ever so slightly. Asami was nestled uncomfortably in between Korra's legs, she would have enjoyed it more if not for being in the most terrifying situation that she’d ever been in. That, and the fact that she was hunched over like a troll. Her back started to hurt.

“Korra?” Asami broke the silence.

No answer.

“Are you okay?” She spoke softly, voice vibrating in the dark. 

Her heart broke when Korra shook her head slightly. Asami grazed her hand slowly up and down Korra's arm, the way that her mom used to when she was little and had a nightmare. Korra's grip loosened and gradually her breathing returned to normal. It seemed like the adrenaline from falling was starting to wear off. The muscles in both their arms relaxed as they leaned against each other. It was shocking at how _normal_ it felt. The feeling of Korra's chest rising and falling make Asami's cheeks burn. As their eyes adjusted to the dark, Asami hatched a plan.

“Korra, do you have your phone with you?” 

She nodded slowly, tensing up again.

“Where is it? Do you have it?” 

Korra shook her head, feeling her bring Asami closer.

“Please don’t move. This whole thing could come down at any second.”

She did have a point, If Asami could reach either one of their phones, there was a chance she could call Tahno or Mako for help. But if she moved too quickly or if the phones had no signal, she would have lost Korra's trust. Plus, it felt kind of nice to be near her, the soft scent of lilac and jasmine invading her nose. It was soothing. 

“Okay.” Asami nodded. “My back hurts a little, is it okay if I sit against your chest?”

No response.

“I’ll move, _really_ slow. I promise it’s okay.” She could hear Korra's heartbeat in her chest.

“Okay.” Korra sounded so small and all Asami wanted to do was hold her tight and tell her it was going to be okay. 

Slowly, Asami twisted her body until she was sitting in between Korra's blue dress that was hiked up above her knees to make room for her spread legs. Pleasantly surprised at the lack of movement from the elevator, she made herself comfortable sitting back on Korra. Immediately she was enveloped in muscular arms, the shorter girl's head resting on her shoulder. In any other situation, Aaami would have freaked out by the touching. Korra didn't seem to like her, but now they were holding on to each other, literally for dear life, in a matter of minutes. Korra exhaled and tensed up, only relaxing when Asami covered her hand and rubbed soothing circles over her knuckles with her thumb.

"Any idea when they might come get us?" Asami let her head fall back with a dull thud to the wall behind her.

"Well, the uncut movie, which they're playing today, is about 3 ½ hours long. So yeah."

"Wow." She wanted to be mad, to scream and cry and curse the gods. But, oddly she was relieved. 

Technically she left because she wanted a chance to breathe and be alone. While she was able to get away, and albeit in a tiny metal deathtrap, she felt she was able to breathe. Somewhere deep down she suspected that Korra felt the same. If she really wanted to be away from Asami and get out, she would have made her fix the elevator with the phone flashlights shining her way. The silence that enveloped them felt fragile, far from the awkward air of their initial meeting and not quite the desperate heaving mess that hung over them moments ago.

"We're probably going to be here for a while."

"Yeah" Korra hummed.

It was hot and sweat was causing Asami's dress to stick to her back. She could feel her usually silky wavy hair begin to frizz, hairspray sticking to the perspiration on her forehead and cheeks. There was no smell in the air as far as Asami could tell, but she was starting to feel self-conscious. Without raising her arms, she gathered all of her hair to the side, suppressing a shiver as she felt Korra's breath ghost over her exposed skin.

"You smell good." Korra muttered.

Asami blinked and stiffened. What was happening?

"Thanks?" It came out more cautious than anything.

Was this like one of those mean girl moments that happened in every coming of age movie? Where the bully would say something like 'nice hair, not!' She tensed as she waited for the insult that would inevitably follow. 

"Like strawberries."

Asami suppressed a giggle and smirked to herself.

"Thanks." This time it was genuine.

"I thought you would smell… expensive for some reason."

That smacked the smirk right off her face. Did she smell cheap?

"Thanks." She said flatly.

"It's nice." Korra nuzzled into Asami's back and it chipped away at the wall she'd built.

"I don't get you Korra." 

"I don't get you either."

They were quiet again. If it wasn't so hot, Asami would have fallen asleep. Her butt certainly had at this point.

"I'm surprised your little boyfriend hasn't come to find you yet."

Sniffling a groan, she sat up.

"Not my boyfriend. I could say the same for Kuvira." 

Korra snorted and let Asami go. It annoyed her to find how disappointed she felt.

"Kuvia is _not_ my girlfriend."

"Oh? But you guys were so cozy in Vegas?" 

Was that a hint of jealousy? Hopefully, Korra didn't pick up on it.

"Gross. We're just like that." 

"Hmmm. Is that why you were clinging to me so tightly when you don't even know my name?" Asami teased.

"Oh, I know all about you, Miss. Asami Sato. Heiress to the Sato fortune, literal billionaire and one of the richest people in the world."

It was kind of shocking that Korra knew so much, given how much she tried to ignore her.

"What's wrong princess, the Bourgeoisie got your tongue?"

"I'm just surprised you even know my name." Her inner fangirl was screaming. It was like she was in a weird self insert fanfiction that she would have read when she was 12.

"We're called Kill the Kennedys. Of course, I know your name. You're literal American royalty, like Prince Wu."

"Oh my God don't even get me started on that guy." Asami leaned back against Korra and rubbed her temples.

They were still talking in hushed voices, but they were much more relaxed now.

"Who names their son 'Prince'? It's like you _want_ him to be bullied."

"Tell me about it." He was the last thing she wanted to think about. The only thing that saved her from his constant flirting up until then was Mako. Maybe not telling the world about the breakup was a good thing.

"So what happened between you and the pretty boy?"

"Pretty boy?" Asami chuckled as Korra rested against her back.

"You know, annoying scowl, weird eyebrows, the lesser brother." 

Asami snorted and shook as she tried to contain her laughter. Tears gathered in her waterline and got caught in her waterproof eyeliner.

"It just wasn't working." She was able to get out.

"Surprised it hasn't been leaked to the press yet."

"Wasn’t really my choice." She said quietly, bringing her knees to her chest and hugging them tightly.

"Really now? So the rumors are true, the princess is a bonafide daddy's girl?" 

For some reason, that pissed her off. She sat up away from Korra and shifted so that she wasn't touching her.

"I'm surprised Bolin hasn't spilled yet. That boy does not keep secrets."

"I… don't think he knows. Or didn't? Until recently."

"How long has it been?"

"6 months."

Korra whistled, the echo vibrating off the walls.

"Wow, for an engineer, you're kind of dumb." Korra teased. "If you don't think he knows then you're dumber than the parts you put together.

Asami considered crawling to the other end of the elevator. Korra was too close, her heat tantalizing and voice mocking. It was confusing and Asami didn't know what to make of it.

"Where were you going?" She could feel Korra's stare.

"I needed a breath. Somewhere where I could be alone." 

Korra hummed in understanding, picking up a piece of Asami's hair and twirling it in her fingers.

"And you?"

"Same. Crowds aren't my thing." 

Asami nodded, forgetting Korra couldn't see her very well.

The elevator jolted again and the lights flickered on. Korra grabbed Asami and pulled her in close again. Descending slowly until they reached the bottom, firefighters in bright red suits tore the door open and held it long enough for the two of them to get out. Mako, Tahno, and Kuvira were waiting for them in the basement of the old theatre. Along with PR personnel and administration.

After some long-winded apologies and an earful to the staff from Korra and Mako, they were allowed to leave. Mako guided Asami from the scene, placing a hand on her shoulder. Tahno promised to text her and make up for the horrible first date.

"Hey princess." She turned around to find Korra smirking at her. "Thanks."

Asami felt her face heat up. She waved goodbye to the group and followed Mako out of the building through a back door, feeling like for the first time in months, things were going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lot of writers block when writing this chapter. I really tried by best and even write this throughout the course of an all-nighter (I couldn't seep anyway). Usually when I have writers block I go for a run, that's how I got the idea for this story! Although it did help for another korrasami idea that I have, this one remained blank. I bring to you, 5.6k words.
> 
> I hope you like it! And as always, thank you for reading!


	6. Day 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted cute times so I wrote cute times. Short chapter before we get into feelings.

News about the elevator getting stuck and ruining the premiere never got out. At least, not the version of events that really happened.

**Premiere of 'The Silent Man' Ruined**

_Late on Saturday evening, elevators at the Republic Theatre malfunctioned with staff members inside. It is not known at this time how long they were trapped for, but once they were found the premier was cut short and scheduled to continue at a later time._

_More information about this event is currently being gathered._

Update of the news never came, even after a week of radio silence from Tahno and the rest of her friends. Mako seemed to want to placate her, assuring her dad that Asami was nowhere near the elevator at the time of the malfunction. While she was grateful for his compliance, the nagging feeling of Mako getting fired should Hiroshi ever find out about their lie ate away at her consciousness. Besides the lone gossip website and those who were aware of the situation, word would likely never get out.

Getting ready for a tech conference and showcase for the next month left Asami with little to no time to analyze what happened with Korra that evening. That didn't stop her mind from drifting to the way Korra's muscles wrapped around Asami, or how her head was buried in the crook of her neck in the middle of the night. It made her stomach tingle if she lingered on it for too long.

Asami felt her smartwatch vibrate and rolled her eyes when she noticed it was an unsaved number. It wasn't all that uncommon, usually scam texts about friends inviting her to try a new type of cryptocurrency. She dug her phone out of her back pocket and opened the message

Unknown **:**

_its rude to ghost someone after a date you know_

She stared at the screen until it went dark and rubbed her eyes, opening the screen again to get another look. Could it be Tahno? Asami already had his number and he would have said it was him in the first place. What did they mean _date_? Asami continued to glare as she typed out a response.

Me **:**

_???????????_

Unknown senders were not very common since she always guarded her information closely. The response came minutes later.

Unknown:

_oh so you dont consider cuddling in a metal death trap while we wait for help a date?_

Asami let out a laugh of relief as she typed her reply.

Me: 

_Korra! Don't scare me like that._

Bully:

_i had to say something_

_you never reached out to me_

Me:

_How was I supposed to contact you???_

Bully:

_life finds a way my dear princess_

Me:

_Did Tahno give you my number?_

Bully _:_

_no_

_i stole his phone and took it from there like a civilized human_

Me:

_Wow. Stalker much? I thought "We're not friends and we never will be."_

Bully:

_sometimes im wrong_

_look_

_ive been mean to you_

_i wanted to apologize for that_

_and_

_thanks for helping me cope during the whole elevator fiasco_

_you had every right to push me away or ignore me but you didnt_

_you also could have probably fixed it way earlier if you didnt take me into consideration_

Asami blinked at her phone, re-reading the texts until they were burned into her brain.

Me:

_I'm glad I could help you feel better._

_And_

_Apology accepted_ 😌

_On ONE condition_

_Friends?_

Bully:

_friends:)_

_let me make it up to you_

_when are you free?_

Me:

 _I have a conference in LA in about a week? It lasts 2 weeks but I only_ really _have to be there for like the first 3 days._

Bully:

_were all taking a break from touring_

_come and hang out with me for at least one day_

_and if we can stand each other after that then stay the remaining 10_

Me:

_That sounds fun! I'll text you the details shortly._

Bully:

_see you then princess_

That's how Asami ended up in LA at Korra's door on the fourth day of her two week trip. Bolin and Opal didn't seem to be invited, so she didn’t invite anyone else as well. Mako drove her to the front gate and elected to stay with Bolin for the night, awaiting further instructions from Asami. She felt like a child being dropped off at her friend's house while her mom ran to do errands.

She knocked at the big wooden door of the large one-floor estate. The trek from the gate to the front door was long and she was grateful for it. The foliage cascaded above her as she followed the road leading to the home and was surprised to find a small pond to the side of the house. Korra answered her door and Asami was surprised at her state of undress. Korra had on a pair of joggers and a sports bra, showing off her toned arms and abs. Asami stared for a good second before she averted her gaze and cleared her throat with a hand covering her mouth.

Korra grinned and crossed her arms as she leaned over to the frame of the door. Suddenly Asami felt like she was overdressed in her red and black sundress. She even took care to pick her hair up in a low ponytail with her bangs gathered up in a loose French braid at the front.

"Wow. Do you always dress up when you're hanging out doing nothing at a friend's house?"

"Do you always leave your guests standing outside?"

Korra laughed and led Asami into her home. It had a very minimalist vibe, there were almost no personal effects like art or pictures on her wall. All of the furniture was cozy, most notably the couch that was covered in a variety of blankets and pillows. There was a plate of half-forgotten pizza rolls underneath the muted T.V. 

"Go ahead and take a seat. I'll be right back." She took a few steps and turned around to give Asami a once-over. "Also, feel free to take off your shoes." She added before disappearing down a hallway.

Asami obliged and decided to sit on a chair to the side of the couch. What was the proper seating etiquette when going over to a friend's house? She didn't have much experience on that front. Korra came back with a dark blue tank and the same joggers holding a change of clothes. Crossing over to Asami, she handed her the change of clothes and hovered over her. Asami couldn't help but notice that she took off her sports bra underneath, nipples poking through the fabric.

"While that dress is adorable, I prefer to be comfortable." She took a seat on the couch. "You don't have to change, but I thought that I would offer you the chance to do so if you wanted to."

Asami examined the clothes and tried to hide the heat that she felt in her face.

"We really didn't discuss what we'd be doing." She mumbled.

"I know, my bad." Korra scratched at her nose. "I should have warned you. We look to be about the same size so I just picked what I thought you would like."

The clothes smelled nice like Korra did that night in the elevator. She had to stop herself from pushing the fabric into her face and inhaling.

"What did you have planned for us today?"

"Nothing!" Korra kicked her feet up and settled them comfortably on the couch. "That's literally the perfect day, wouldn't you say?"

Asami blinked at her and looked back at the clothes on her lap. She stood up, clutching them tightly.

"Bathroom is down that hall, first door to your right." Korra pointed to the hall she just came from without looking up.

Asami followed her directions to the bathroom to change her clothes. The shorts were the first thing she noticed, black and short. The waistband fell nicely on her hips. The shirt was a tour tee from one of their first concerts, graphics faded from all the washes through the years. It wasn't tight in the least and was almost the same length as her shorts. She spun in the mirror feeling out of place. Even when she was home she wore more than she currently had on. Examining the braid, she elected to take it down. It took her a long time to do, but it was kind of tight.

Lavender and Jasmine surrounded her and filled her lungs with a calming feeling. She took the shirt and held it to her nose, indulging in Korra's scent. Flashbacks to being stuck in the elevator together came back to her as she wrapped an arm around her waist and closed her eyes. What was she doing there? How did she get here?

Picking up her clothes, she exited the bathroom and walked back into the living room to find Korra buried under a nest of blankets. She suppressed a giggle as Korra shifted to make room on the couch for Asami.

"You can put your clothes on the chair you were sitting on. Then you can join me here." She patted the spot next to her head.

Asami gently placed her clothing on the chair and awkwardly sat next to Korra.

"Don't you feel better?" Korra kicked her feet up once more and leaned into Asami.

"Did I look really uncomfortable before?"

"You have a bad habit of answering my questions with questions."

"Sorry." Her face felt hot.

"No worries. I figured it would just be hard to relax if you felt out of place or overdressed."

Asami could feel the tension in her shoulders slowly dissipate. It felt like Korra really was taking steps to help her feel comfortable.

"I guess you're right. I'm just not used to this is all."

"Hanging out with friends?"

"Umm, kind of? I only really ever hang out with Mako, Bolin, and Opal. I also never really wear anything like this?" She played with the end of her shorts.

"You don't like it?" Korra's gaze was intense with concern.

"I do! I just usually have more clothes on than this. Truth be told, I feel kind of naked."

Korra chuckled and threw a nearby blanket over to Asami. "It's August in L.A."

Asami forced a tight-lipped smile as she wrapped herself in the blanket.

"I could always get you something else to wear?"

Asami peeked over at her curiously.

"I mean, I'm pretty sure I have a mumu my mom left behind the last time she was here."

They both burst out in fits of laughter, only calming down when Asami entered full burrito mode and relaxed into the couch with her legs crossed underneath her. She was feeling better already. The day was still early and the sun lit up the living room and Korra's tan skin perfectly. Her hair was shiny and looked soft enough to run a hand through. Blue eyes looked to the T.V. lazily as the streaming service selections changed, seeking something worth watching. Finally, they decided on a cooking show dedicated to saving people the most money.

The air conditioning ran cold around them and the blankets provided the much-needed warmth she needed. Sleep had escaped her the past few nights as she prepared for the conference. Admittedly, sleeping in hotels was really difficult and being nervous about meeting Korra again didn't really help her case either. She closed her eyes and slowly drifted to sleep, only vaguely aware of Korra shifting beside her.

It was dusk by the time she opened her eyes. The sky outside the window was painted with purples and gold, it was absolutely breathtaking. Being stuck inside all day never afforded such luxuries like being able to watch the sunset. There was a small pain in her neck as she realized that her head was resting against Korra's shoulder. Drool was plastered on the corner of her mouth and her eyes felt crusty. She felt the morning breath in her sand dry mouth. 

"You're finally awake?"

Asami wiped at her mouth and silently thanked the universe that her makeup was mostly waterproof.

"I'm so sorry." She looked away from Korra. Hoping she wouldn't get a waft of her breath.

"No problem. There is no truer test of friendship than sleeping together."

Asami felt her heart flutter at the words and gripped the blankets that were still around her.

"You fell asleep too?" 

"Not really. I was content just being with you though." Korra flashed a bright smile. It was different from her stage smile or the one that she gives to fans in public, it was crooked and genuine.

Asami felt a smile tug at her lips. 

"Are you hungry? I was thinking we could order some pizza. Unless you're on like a special diet or something.

When was the last time she had anything to eat?

"Pizza sounds good. Cheese to be specific."

"Then I know this great place! I'll order it and it should be here in a little bit. What do you want to drink?"

Asami wrapped herself tighter in her blanket pursed her lips, combing through what she would like.

"Water aaaaaannnnd…" She dragged out the last word until she ran out of breath. "I don't know. I just know I really have to pee."

Korra chuckled and got up to walk to her kitchen. "Meet me when you're done and I'll make you a drink."

"Thank you!" Asami called after her. She untangled herself and immediately missed the warmth of the blanket as she walked over to the bathroom. She took the opportunity to clean herself up and get rid of her morning breath with the rogue mouthwash she found underneath the sink.

It was somehow even colder in the kitchen than it was in the bathroom. Her teeth clacked against each other and goosebumps erupted on her arms and legs. She ran her hands over her skin in a futile attempt at finding warmth.

"Ready!" She called out. 

Korra turned around from her spot at the island and suppressed a smirk at Asami.

"Do you need a jacket or something?" 

Asami smiled and gave her a tiny nod.

"Give me a sec." Korra hustled out of the kitchen and returned minutes later with yet another KTK merchandise hoodie.

She handed it over to Asami on her way back to the island and took out a few glasses. Asami quickly pulled it on and immediately felt warm. It was a size too big and fell past the length of her shorts. It smelled a little different than the shorts and shirt did, almost a little more personal. She buried her face into the side of the hoodie and inhaled, eyes fluttering shut as she melted into its scent.

"Does it smell bad?" Korra's brow furrowed in concern.

"Oh!" Asami's eyes startled open as she pulled the hem of the hoodie down. "No! I'm sorry I just… smells good."

Korra's nose wrinkled. "Really? I was wearing it earlier today before you got here."

Asami's stare was making her nervous.

"It's not dirty! It was just the closest thing I had and I thought you would get a kick out of the band merch."

Asami hardly heard a word, her brain was malfunctioning when she realized that she was wearing Korra's clothing, standing in her home, after she _drooled_ on her. 

"Let me get you another one." Korra walked past Asami in an attempt to leave.

"Wait!" Asami grabbed her arm. The other girl's skin was as warm as the hoodie that enveloped her. "This is perfect."

Korra stared down at her arm for a few seconds before her eyes trailed back to her.

"Really." Asami assured.

Korra grinned up at her and grabbed the taller girl's hand bringing up to her lips and huffing onto them.

"Are you always this cold."

Suddenly, Asami felt very hot.

"Uh-" Her brain was short-circuiting.

Korra let go of her hand and made her way to the fridge, pulling out two Sprite bottles. Asami let the sleeves of her hoodie fall over her hands and took a seat on the nearby barstool, watching Korra gather lemons and tea bags.

"What are you making?" She asked curiously.

"Some tea that I found while I was scrolling in my phone earlier." Korra lazily dropped some ice cubes in the glass.

Asami hummed in response and watched Korra drop in fresh raspberries and slices of lemons. A chime buzzed through the house and Asami was snapped out of her peaceful trance.

"That must be the food. Can you help me get it while I finish up here? It's already paid for." 

Asami nodded in response and ran over to the front floor, collecting the pizza and thanking the young man for his trouble. She brought the pizza back as Korra finished up the drinks.

"Can I help you set up?" 

"Sure, the plates are in that cabinet there and napkins are under the sink."

Once the table was set and gathered, they fell into a comfortable silence. The pizza was amazing and Asami ate more than she thought she could. In between bites she pulled out her phone and assured Mako and her dad that she was okay.

"You and Tahno sure looked good in all of the press photos." Korra said in between bites of her pizza.

"Did we?" Asami couldn't recall any pictures. She didn't follow the press as closely as her father tended to, but he was upset that it brought up questions of a breakup.

Korra chuckled and finished the rest of her drink before she started cleaning up. Asami wasn't too far behind her as they fell into a routine of washing and drying the dew plates they used.

"Are you staying over?" Korra asked as she put the final plate away. 

"That's an option?" Asami asked seriously.

"Yes!" Korra giggled. " I said if we could stand each other you should stay. It doesn't make much sense to be going back and forth from your hotel that's 2 hours away by car.

Asami smiled and played with her too-long sleeves. 

"Okay." She looked up to find Korra smiling back at her.

After a quick text to Mako to bring her bags, they said goodnight as Asami isolated herself in the guestroom with Korra's clothes. That night she slept better than she could in as long as she could remember, Korra's hoodie wrapped around her and filled her with their combined scent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Something that I see a lot in fics or in other queer media is the fear of homophobia. I'm still largely closeted and I hate being reminded that in 2020 something like that still looms over the LGBTQIA+ community. I'm not going to write homophobia into this story. It's an AU and I can choose to exclude it if I want, so I will.
> 
> Thank you for reading so far!


	7. Day 2

Light peeked into the guest bedroom through the crevices of the heavy blackout curtains. Surrounded by the heavy comforter and clothes that weren't hers, Asami stirred awake. The ceiling was smooth and white, untouched like most of the room was. It took her a few seconds to realize where she was, last night coming back to her in pieces. She pulled on her hood and snuggled further into the foreign bed. Pillows surrounded her as she lay in a haze of half-sleep.

A soft knock echoed through the room followed by Korra's head poking out from the door. Her hair was pulled back and she was glistening in the harsh morning sun leaking in from the hall.

"Are you finally awake?" Korra asked softly.

"Nnnnnhhh." Asami hugged a large pillow and lazily threw her leg over it. She shook her head and buried her face away from the offending light.

"Wow. I can tell you're a morning person." Korra chuckled and entered the guest room, closing the door with a soft click.

Asami heard shuffling and guessed it could only be Korra moving around the room. Suddenly the bed shook and she jolted awake, turning to Korra with her eyes wide. 

Korra grinned down at her and Asami felt droplets on her face. 

Sweat.

It was sweat.

Asami wiped away the foreign moisture and squinted up at Korra. She was like the sun, a smile so dazzlingly bright it almost hurt Asami to look directly at it. After squinting for what felt like forever she rolled over and scooted herself to the edge of the bed, willing herself back to sleep.

"Come oooooooon!" Korra whined and jumped in place on the bed.

With a hard thud, Asami found herself on the floor with her lone makeshift body pillow. A puppy. Korra reminded her of a puppy.

"It's too early for this!" Asami pulled the strings of her stolen hoodie until only her nose and mouth were visible.

"It's already 8! That's late considering  _ you  _ went to bed at 9 yesterday." Korra shuffled closer to the edge of the bed and peered down at the taller girl. "I already went for a run." 

Asami could hear the grin in Korra's voice, preparing herself to get up because once she was awake, she couldn't fall back asleep no matter what. 

"Fine!" Asami sat up and threw the pillow with no force at Korra. "Let me shower and I'll meet you after."

"Yes!" Korra pumped her fist in the air and stepped off the bed. "I knew you were a shower in the morning type of person." She turned to leave and exited the room as fast as she came in.

"I'm a shower whenever I want to type of person." Asami muttered under her breath defiantly. Picking herself off the floor, she padded to the connected bathroom of her room to start her day.

By the time Asami was done and entered the kitchen, Korra was plating their yogurt and fruit. Korra was wearing a different tank and a plain pair of joggers. Asami opted for some black jeans and the hoodie that she would never give back to Korra.

"Just in time." Korra smirked at her. "Would the princess like some honey in her parfait?" 

There was that nickname again. Asami suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and nodded, taking a seat across from Korra on the Island.

"I forgot to ask what you like to eat for breakfast." 

Asami stirred her bowl as she tried to remember when the last time she ate breakfast was. "I guess I don't normally eat breakfast?" I usually take an early lunch and go from there." She took a bite of yogurt and chewed the fruit, deciding it needed more honey.

"Sweet tooth huh?" Korra teased as Asami reached for the bottle.

Asami smiled at her and squeezed out a dollop of honey. "You could say that." Her tone playful.

They ate in silence, occasionally looking at each other until they were both done. Korra collected their bowls and washed them, humming absentmindedly.

"What do you normally eat for breakfast?" Asami asked.

"Hmmmmm…" Korra paused for a bit and pursed her lips. "Mostly fruit, but when I was a kid my mom would make me a lot of meat, fish, and other stuff." 

A flashback of Asami's mother making her pancakes flashed through her mind. She didn’t remember much about her mom, but she was glad when she could recall.

After drying the dishes and placing them back in their respective spots, Korra turned to Asami and leaned against the counter. Asami couldn't help but notice how well defined her muscles were.

"I still don't have anything special planned for us, but I want to know more about you."

Asami blinked at her and tilted her head to the side. "Huh?"

"You obviously can't be that bad if you took all my abuse and helped me in a vulnerable moment that we had in private. I used to think the good girl act was for the cameras, but turns out it's not." Korra stared intensely.

"Good girl act?"

"You know, all those charity events and stuff." She waved her hand in the air in a seemingly random gesture.

"You follow that stuff?" Asami tried to hide her smile. "You know for someone who hates celebrities, you sure are obsessed with keeping current."

Korra blinked at her turned away, making way to the couch in the living room.

"Keep your friends close." She took a seat on the couch.

Feeling her chest constrict, she followed Korra to the couch. So that's what it was? Was Asami just some enemy to keep an eye on? She made herself comfortable, making sure to keep her distance from the other girl. Looking around the room, she spotted things that she didn't the day before. Pictures of the band, Tenzin and his kids, as well as people who she assumed was family decorated beneath the glass top of the coffee table. 

"How does an entire family become your management?" Asami leaned over and examined the pictures more closely.

"Well, growing up Tenzin's mom was my neighbor. She was basically family to us especially after her husband died."

"I'm sorry to hear that." 

"It was before I was born, everyone told me he was a kick-ass old man though." Korra chuckled. 

Asami's fingers ghosted the glass as she examined each picture carefully.

"I also used to babysit Tenzin's brats. He actually has 4 now." Korra continued.

"That's a lot of kids. I only knew about the 3." 

"They're great though. We were a family that always loved music and it just made sense to bring them along with me when we made the band." 

"How did you meet the rest of them? I know in interviews that you'd known Varrick for a while and you and Tahno didn't have the best start."

"Now who's obsessed?" Korra snorted.

"I've never been shy about the fact that I am KTK's biggest fan." She didn't dare look over at Korra. Maybe if she did she would have the satisfied grin.

"I remember Bolin saying something about that." 

Despite the pain that the name brought, Asami couldn't help but feel nostalgic at the last memories of their friendship. It was hard to believe that it was almost a year ago. 

"I met Kuvira because she hung out with us after a local show we did. We all hit off great and she just became a member. It's not really that exciting."

Asami nodded her head as her eyes roamed the pictures.

"Oh my God!" Asami jumped up and flew to the end of the table. Hands hovered on either side of a lone picture of Korra, estimated age about 5 or 6 in a too-small shirt and sweatpants defiantly running out in the snow without shoes.

"Oh no." Korra covered her face with her hand. "No one ever comes over, so I forgot to hide it." 

"Oh ho ho! Seems to me like you've always been a little shit." She smirked and looked directly at Korra's unreadable face, so focused on keeping eye contact that she didn't notice the pillow Korra threw connecting directly with her face. 

The surprise threw her back to the ground as she erupted into a fit of giggles. Stitches began to form on her sides and heat radiated from her pink face.

"It's not that funny!" Korra pouted, looking like the baby photo of her.

"I'm sorry!" Asami apologized through her wheezing. "You're just  _ so  _ freaking cute!"

Korra stuck her tongue out at Asami and laid down on the couch. Asami rolled over under the table and spread out on the floor with her head to Korra's feet. The ceiling was covered in tiny light blue stars much to Asami's surprise.

"Are you comfortable down there?" 

"Yeah." Asami hummed as she closed her eyes. The past two days were a blur to her and, if Korra would have her, she could stay for 8 more. It wasn't lost on Asami that Korra did a complete 180 in a matter of weeks. A traumatic event could bring people closer, but Korra didn't seem like the type to change her mind so quickly. Even if it took her the entire 8 days, she was determined to find out why Korra hated her in the first place, and what changed her mind.

Asami peeked through one eye to find Korra's gaze on her. Squeezing her eyes shut again, Asami broke eye contact and straightened her head to face the ceiling again. She was in no rush to find out. They had plenty of time together. She reached for the pillow Korra had thrown and placed it under her head.

"What about you?" Korra asked quietly, the T.V. forgotten in the background. 

"What about me?"

"How did you meet Bolin and the rest of your crew?"

Asami breathed out of her nose and thought of the best way to answer.

"When I was 18 and planning to go to college, my dad thought it was a good idea to have 24/7 security. We went through a bunch of people before we settled on Mako. He was young but he was willing to devote himself to our family for some reason I still don't understand."

She adjusted herself before she continued.

"I was excited because he was around the same age as me and I wanted to make a friend. We did and I was introduced to Bolin and Opal and the rest was history."

"Was history?" Korra asked.

"Yeah…" Asami nearly whispered.

"You wanted to make a friend?" Korra changed the subject, probably sensing that Asami didn't want to talk about it.

"Yeah. I didn't really have them before Mako." 

"I would have never guessed from you hanging around the heirs of other families."

Asami snorted and turned to her stomach, making sure to face away from Korra.

"Oh, so I'm wrong?" Korra challenged.

Asami was starting to get frustrated. Korra didn't know her, she didn't have the right to challenge anything that Asami said or did, she had no reason to lie.

"You know, for someone who hates me so much you sure do pretend to know a lot about me. 

"I don't hate you… anymore." 

Deciding to ignore her, Asami focused on the cooking channel that was on. The host was chopping up tomatoes and zucchini really thinly when Korra decided to pick up the conversation again.

"How did you and Mako start dating? You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

She could feel Korra's eyes on her.

"I don't really know. It kind of just happened? We spent a lot of time together and we got really close because it was mostly just us all the time. It made a lot of sense at the time."

"So did you like him? Did you like being  _ with  _ him?"

Asami knew the answer before the question left the other girl's mouth. 

"I think I liked what being with him afforded me. Then slowly, he stopped allowing it for me."

What being with Mako afforded her didn't have to be said, it was an unspoken truth that surrounded them.

"Your dad thinks you're at the hotel with him, doesn't he?" 

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry about your mom." Korra added. "I didn't know if I should bring it up or not, but now that we're friends it only feels right."

Maybe Korra did understand more than what Asami originally thought.

"Thanks." 

The rest of the afternoon was spent watching a limited true-crime series that Korra heard was really good but was unable to watch until now. Due to work, there wasn't much free time for Asami to relax like she was with Korra. There was a sweet bliss with turning off your brain and partaking in the age-old activity of being a couch potato.

By the time evening came, the girls grew hungry and ventured into the kitchen to concoct a meal worthy of their newly strengthened relationship. After realizing that all of the ingredients were either frozen or inadequate to make anything remotely edible, they decided to make ramen.

It had gone full circle. Ramen was the stuff of new beginnings.

Before they knew it night fell again and it was time to break for the night. Korra walked Asami to her room and said goodnight at the door like a date would after a night out. Asami could hardly suppress her giddiness as she closed the bedroom down and began her nighttime routine.

That night she fell asleep to the sounds of cicadas in the night sky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if this chapter is shorter than it usually is. I never expected this fic to be this long, but I like it so far. Thank you so much for all of the wonderful comments and engagement! It really makes my day when I see it. Buckle in because next chapter the rating is changing to Explicit. Just maybe not for the reasons you think it would. I've also been going back to fix spelling and grammatical errors in my writing to make it easier to read.
> 
> Expect mind numbing fluff in the next 5 or so chapters.


	8. Day 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: There is a smut scene in the beginning of this chapter. This fic is now rated Explicit. 
> 
> I don't have much experience writing smut, and I have never written smut between two women before so please be gentle.
> 
> Enjoy!

Asami woke to tan muscular arms sliding around her waist. Korra's breath ghosted along the back of her neck and ears causing shocks of electricity down her spine. She didn't dare open her eyes, colors flying behind closed lids.

"Is this okay?" Korra whispered as she placed soft kisses on the tip of Asami's ears. She shuddered and bit back a moan. Nodding a little too enthusiastically, she placed her hands on top of Korra's as she began to explore her body. Fingers wandered underneath the old hoodie and slowly found skin, Asami's voice inviting them in further.

"You don't have to hold back with me." Korra's fingers left fire with every touch. Flat palms dragged lazily up her abdomen until they found Asami's boobs. Korra cupped one lightly while taking care to avoid her nipples.

Asami was both parts thankful and frustrated. Nipple play was her weakness and she didn't want Korra to see her so unhinged. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so good.

"You're so soft." Korra pressed her body further into Asami and began to lightly tease her nipples.

Asami couldn't stop the moan that ripped through her throat. Her hands covered her mouth and she hid her face in the pillows. One of Korra's hands followed hers and gently tugged her hands out of her mouth. 

"Don't do that. You sound so nice."

Tears pooled in Asami’s eyes and threatened to spill down her blushing cheeks. She was panting heavily and she shook as Korra slid her hand down her pajama bottoms and into her lips. 

"Wait!" She pulled at Korra's hand weakly, panic bubbling in her throat when Korra wouldn't budge. "I haven't shaved!" The tears flowed freely down her face.

"Even better." Korra bit on her ear lobe, playing lazily with Asami's hair and moving them from her folds.

Asami couldn't believe this was happening. She usually liked to keep shaven because that's how Mako liked it, but after they broke up she went back to her natural state. Embarrassment numbed her, but it was no match for Korra's skilled fingers.

Korra felt around for Asami's clit and grinned as Asami's shivered and panted harder against her. She circled it a few times slowly as she reveled in the moans Asami was letting out. 

Asami pushed herself back against Korra. More. She needed more. More of becoming undone at Korra's touch and more pressure on her clit. Korra removed her finger from Asami's clit and licked the base of her neck when Asami whimpered at the lack of touch.

"Don't worry. I'll take care of you princess."

Asami was so wet, and that nickname did things to her she never thought was possible. Korra's fingers trailed down Asami's folds and gently spread her open, letting a finger slip into her ready, twitching hole.

Letting loose was usually hard for her, but at this point she didn't even care, she just wanted Korra to work at her. Korra's other hand pinched a nipple and she continued to kiss and leave hickeys along her throat and jaw.

"Does it feel good?" Korra slipped another finger in and picked up her pace. "Or do you want more?" 

"God yes! Please!" Asami gasped, answering both of Korra's questions. Korra picked up her pace and applied more pressure to her nipple. Asami couldn't help but grind her hips down on the other girl. Heat pooled in her stomach and Asami was seeing bright lights dance beneath her eyelids.

"Please don't stop!" She choked out. 

"Wouldn't dream of it." Korra dragged her tongue up Asami's neck and back down to bite into one of her shoulders.

It was just what she needed to be thrown over the edge, head thrown back in a silent scream as Korra continued at her pace. It was enough to make her go cross-eyed. Tremors shocked her entire body as she reached the peak of her pleasure, stopping only when her tense legs relaxed underneath her.

Then she opened her eyes. Asami panted in bed for a few seconds before she let her eyes wander across the room. Sweat coated every inch of her skin and her damp clothes stuck to her uncomfortably. It took her a second to realize that she was panting and she didn't dare move. Was it just a dream?

It took every ounce of strength Asami had to reach her arms out on the bed and search for the other girl. Relief mixed with disappointment washed over her as she felt nothing but the comforter and pillows surrounding her. The muscles in her body relaxed as she took an exasperated breath. Hair stuck to her face and for the first time since she set foot in Korra's house, she was incredibly hot. 

The ache in her stomach was real and she couldn't tell if she had orgasmed or not. It wouldn't surprise her if she did considering the amount of time that had passed without one. She stood up quickly and peeled off her clothes as she ran into the shower. Cold water ran through the showerhead and baptized her burning flesh. Korra was nice enough to let her stay and they were just getting to mend their relationship, she would not let that be ruined by some wet dream.

The worst part was, that was the first-ever wet dream she'd had. Hell, the first-ever  _ sex _ dream she’d have. It wasn't something that she thought about often. Usually, her dreams would pan out if she and the other person were getting intimate or it would cut to right after the affair. Never had she felt the sensations so real, even in nightmares where she would wake up wondering if she was still in her dream. Not to mention that the dream started with her waking up, so it was hard to tell what was real and what wasn't.

It would be a lie if she said she'd never thought about Korra like that. She had a secret Korra Stan Twitter account after all with multiple threads of Korra's back in her famous tank tops and arms that looked like they could pick you up and toss you over her very nice shoulders.

She took her hands and slapped her cheeks hard enough to sting. Stop! Enough of the gross thoughts. There was no way that she was going to ruin this friendship, not now or ever. A crush was just that, temporary and hopefully fleeting. 

The shower was longer than it probably should have been but Asami had to scrub every thought of sex from her brain, she was afraid that Korra would be able to see the dream painted on her body otherwise. As she was getting dressed and opted for a long-sleeved maxi dress, she decided to forgo the hoodie that she became so bonded with. First of all, there was the fact that it was covered in her sweat, and the second because she was afraid she would get the same fiery feeling in her chest that she got when she was around Korra.

Asami grabbed her phone and sent a quick text to her dad and let him know what the convention was going well when she noted the time.

10:45

That was suspicious, especially when Korra woke her up at the ass crack of dawn the morning prior. 

'Oh no.' Asami thought as her blood ran cold. She couldn't have heard Asami moaning right? She'd never been asleep talker or anything, so what are the chances that she would be moaning out in her sleep? She cursed softly at herself and began packing her bags in case Korra had heard. There was no way that she was going to stick around another ruined friendship. Leaving immediately wasn't an option until she knew that there was no saving them. Once she was done she placed her luggage by the door and slowly made her way to the living room, relieved to find herself alone. 

She looked out the large windows and found Korra squatting by the pond in running shorts and a sports bra, sweat clinging to her back and by the nape of her neck. Korra's brunette hair hung loosely in a low ponytail tail, flyaways sticking out everywhere. The harsh late morning sun reminded Asami of the dark honey they used for breakfast yesterday. Tranquility washed over her as she opened the door quietly and tiptoed out with her bare feet. It was almost unbearably humid outside and she began regretting her long-sleeved dress as she began to sweat. Korra turned to face her and Asami blotted her lips trying to keep herself as calm as possible.

And then Korra smiled.

Asami felt like she was coming undone all over again. Her face heated up as she shared the other girl's lopsided grin. 

"Come here!" Korra waved her over to the pond and pointed at one of the fish. 

Asami took small steps forward and made sure to keep a safe distance from Korra before crouching down to stare into the water.

"When it's not too hot I like to sit out here after my run." 

They watched the blue fish swing around its tiny enclosure and around other fish. The lack of wind made it unbearable and Asami began to feel herself sweat more. She hunched over further to keep herself partially hidden from Korra.

"Asami, are you okay?" Korra reached her hand over and gently placed it on Asami's forehead. "Your face is all pink and you look sweaty."

As soon as she felt the warmth of the foreign hand she jerked away suddenly and found herself plummeting ass first into Korra's tiny shallow pond. Fish swam away from her frantically as Asami hung her head in shame. If her face was red before then she must have been an entire tomato now. Her butt was completely submerged and she left gross and slippery all over. Knowing Korra, she was probably ready to bust a seam at Asami's current state.

"Asami!" Korra must have been calling her for a few seconds. 

Asami hesitated to look up, knowing if she did she would probably start to cry.

"I'm sorry." She said through quivering lips. "I'll fix any of the damages or pay for the fish I killed."

"Forget that! Are you okay? It looked like it hurt."

Asami shook her head and moved over to her hands and knees to get up. Korra grabbed one of her arms to help her and let go immediately when Asami became stiff.

"Sorry." Korra backed up a few steps to let Asami get out. 

"I'm okay!" Asami grabbed her dress and wrung out as much water as she could. Her lips and jaw hurt as she forced her smile.

"Is everything okay? You don't look so good."

Asami turned to walk back to the house. It was go-time and she was glad she had the hindsight to pack in case anything went wrong. So much for trying to make friends. She was  _ weak _ and disgusting, being alone and not being able to keep meaningful human connections was her punishment for her weak constitution. 

"Asami wait!" Korra called after her. 

There was a firm grip on her wrist and tingles in her spine. She turned to find the most concerned eyes she'd ever seen. Never in a million years did she ever think Korra could ever make that face, much less to her.

"I'm sorry." She sounded like a broken record.

"There's nothing to be sorry about! If anything  _ I'm _ the one who's sorry for startling you. I didn't think that you would react that way."

Asami started down at the floor and peeked up at Korra through curtained hair, eyes falling back to Korra gripping her wrist.

"Are you not feeling okay? Do you need medicine or something? I can make soup if you need."

"You didn’t do anything wrong." Asami exhaled after a brief pause. "I just don't feel very well."

Korra let go of her hand and cupped Asami's face. She stared directly at the taller girl and before pushing their foreheads together.

Asami's breath hitched in her throat as she tried to swallow. It felt so good to be close with someone again, even if it meant the unfamiliar feelings of the butterflies in her stomach.

"You feel a little warm, but it's nothing crazy." Korra let go of Asami’s face and stepped back. "I know you probably just showered, but maybe you should take a new one and we'll watch movies on the couch."

Asami nodded and turned to walk into the house to begin her morning routine again. When she emerged from her shower she found a pair of flannel pajama bottoms and a band tee on her bed. She brought the clothes to her face and inhaled, all stress dissipating from her muscles. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the hoodie she'd been wearing for the past couple of days folded neatly on the other side of the bed. 

It looked like it'd just been washed and Asami confirmed it when she put it on and noted the scent of laundry detergent. That must have been a long shower for Korra to have been able to wash and dry some clothes. It almost felt as if the dream never happened, washed away like her sweat from the clothing.

Maybe she was just being dramatic. It wasn't like Korra knew about the dream, and as long as Asami kept her cool she never would. 

Taking a deep breath, she walked over to the kitchen and found Korra looming over a Dutch oven with probably too much food in it. While she did feel bad that Korra was doing this for her, it felt nice to be taken care of. 

Tea was waiting on the counter and suddenly she was really tired, the anxiety really took a toll on her. Korra turned around as she took a seat at the island and gave her a concerned look.

"You're okay right?" Korra eyes her suspiciously.

"Yeah. I think I'm just a little tired." She was too tired to think about anything else.

"I don't think it's a fever. Have you been having weird dreams?" 

The look on Asami’s face must have answered it for her. 

"That's what happens to me when I start feeling sick."

Asami took a sip of the tea and looked away. Korra paused for a second to look at her before she turned off the stove and served Asami what seemed to be portage. Thanking Korra she began to eat as much as she could with the little appetite that she did have.

"What's going on Asami?" Korra asked suddenly.

The spoon she was holding fell into the down with a loud thud and she clenched her stomach. Bile was rising in her throat and she tried to cough it away. She could feel herself visibly trembling when Korra grabbed her hand firmly in her own.

"Look, I don't know what this is about but I want to be your friend Asami. And from the looks of it, it seems that you always try to push people away when you feel like things are going wrong."

Asami refused to look up at Korra, instead choosing to glare at the bowl in front of her.

"You're allowed to have emotions and you're allowed to be scared. I am not going to judge you, I don't even know what's going on. What happened? What made you feel like this?"

Asami let out a shaky breath and turned to look at Korra. Suddenly, she was too tired to be embarrassed.

"I had a weird dream about you last night." She said flatly, still refusing to meet Korra's gaze.

Korra let go of her hand and a smile tugged at her lip. "'S that it?" It was obvious she was trying to keep from laughing. "What happened?"

An obvious blush spread across Asami's face as she turned to look away again.

"Stuff." She mumbled.

Korra was trying and failing to hold back her laughter, Asami's pouting face was incredibly cute. "What kinda stuff?" She pushed, amusement in her voice.

It was apparent that Korra most likely knew that she was talking about. Suddenly she felt so dramatic. Korra was right. She did tend to run away and usually, she didn't give people the chance to stop her. For some reason she seemed to be letting Korra stop her, grateful that she even took the opportunity. Asami fought the smile that threatened to break and she exhaled through her nose.

"Unbiblical stuff." Asami muttered.

"I'm sorry, what? I can't quite hear you." Korra was grinning wider than she was before.

"Animal Planet stuff! Okay?!" Asami was giggling alongside Korra. She wanted to be annoyed, to roll her eyes and huff, but it was impossible.

Korra was in fits, grabbing her sides and leaning against the counted for support. 

" _ That's  _ what you were acting so weird about?" She wheezed.

"You weren't there! It felt so real!" 

Korra wiped the tears from her eyes as she was trying to calm down.

"Oh? Was I any good?" 

"Thanks for the food!" Asami stood up and grabbed her bowl, placing it in the sink as she began to wash the dishes.

"Oh come on! I deserve to know if you were avoiding me in a good way or a bad way." Korra whined from across the kitchen.

There was no way that Asami was going to dignify that with a response. It was enough that she even came right out and said it. Once she was done with the dishes she walked right past Korra to the living room, taking her place on the right side of the couch.

Korra hustled over to her and sat right next to her making sure to avoid touching Asami. It was more for the other girl's sake than hers.

"It felt so real huh?" She teased as she took the remote to turn it on a random cooking channel. Screams from a celebrity chef to incompetent contestants filled the room.

"Oh my God." Asami groaned as she hid her face in her hands. Korra was chuckling next to her.

If the embarrassment from the dream didn't kill her, then Korra's teasing might.

"Was I making you say that?" 

"Korra!" Asami squeaked.

"Were you screaming that too?" 

Asami took her pillow and swung it over to Korra's face, irritated that Korra caught it. She tried to pull it back as Korra grabbed one of her wrists and pulled the pillow out of her grasp.

"Did you hate it? Is that why you were acting weird?" Korra kept her smile on but her tone was soft, sad almost.

"I didn't hate it." She was aware of Korra's loose grip on her. "It just shocked me."

"I didn't know that you even liked girls." Korra brought her hand down to her lap, grip never leaving hers.

Asami was hyper-aware of Korra's touch.

"There's a lot you don't know about me." 

"I can see that. Tell me about the dream."

Asami looked down at Korra's hand and sucked in a breath.

"Well…" She paused for a second as she debated on how much to divulge.

"You were in my bed and you woke me up by hugging me from behind."

"Like when we were in the elevator?"

Oh  _ God _ . It all made sense now.

"Yeah, except we were on our sides. Like spooning."

Korra nodded and Asami followed her cue to continue.

"Then you just started touching and exploring me for a while until I woke up."

"Sounds like a nice dream." Korra moved the top of her fingers up Asami's arm, effectively breaking her out in goosebumps. "But no foreplay? No kissing?" 

"I mean…" Asami was blushing. "It wasn't that long a dream."

"What a shame." Korra inched closed to her. "Do you want to fix that?" 

Asami felt herself lean forward. Eyes heavily lidded and face flushed almost as red as the lipsticks she wears.

She nodded as Korra closed the gap. It was a chase kiss, one that she thought that Korra wasn't capable of. It went so against her image that she found herself suppressing a shiver.

Korra was the first to pull away and she had the same dreamy eyes that Asami was sure she had on her.

The same tan arms that wrapped around her in her dreams gently pulled her towards the shorter girl, knees touching as they deepened the kiss. Not by any means rough, but it was enough to make her feel light-headed.

Was this really happening? She couldn't think straight, her thoughts were consumed by the soft pink lips gently pecking her own. Asami moved her arms around Korra's waist. Although Korra was in very good shape, 6-pack and all, she still had the soft quality to her. She felt so right in her arms.

Asami broke the kiss the second time, adjusting herself to be closer to the other girl before plunging in, this time the kisses turned fiery and needy. They both picked up the pace as their bodies moved closer.

Neither of the girls knew who first flicked their tongue against the other. It didn't matter as their tongues danced and explored their mouths.

Korra tasted like mint and Asami tased like the porridge she just ate. It shouldn't have mixed well, but somehow it just worked. Hands traveled up and down. Through thighs and arms like the tide washing over the coast. Soft exploratory touches careful not to ask for too much.

It felt so good it had Asami's head spinning and she had to pull back to take a breath and collect her thoughts. Her hands still clung to a very confused and cutely dazed Korra. Both girls breathed heavily as they tuned back into the cooking program that played in the background.

"Wait." Asami asked shakily. "I just need to catch my breath." 

"That good huh?" Korra grinned.

Asami laughed and pulled away from her to lean on the armrest of the couch.

"Why didn't you tell me you had a crush on me?" Korra wriggled her eyebrows at Asami.

"Probably because I didn't fully realize it until this morning." She answered honestly. "Plus I wasn't even sure that you liked me." She paused. "Also I didn't want to ruin any chance of friendship that we had."

"The fact that you had all of that lined up and ready to go concerns me."

"Thanks, it's the panic."

"Well now that you do know, nothing has to happen." Korra grabbed her hand again and ran her thumb over her knuckles. "We don't have to talk about it or even keep going like this if you don't want to. Of course, we totally can if you want to."

Asami squeezed her hands against Korra's fingers and tried to ignore her heart thumping in her ears. Logically, she knew that all of this was happening too fast. They'd been hanging out for four days. Yeah maybe they knew each other for a while, but something else was eating away at her.

"Why do you hate me?" Asami looked so small asking the question. It was the entire reason that she was even there. For Korra to make amends.

"I don't hate  _ you,  _ Asami. I know now that my anger was misplaced."

Asami looked up at her without moving her head and Korra squeezed her hand a bit harder.

"Your dad runs a shitty company, he stands for everything that's wrong with the corporate world and the amount of labor lawsuits he has against him is comical."

Asami was fully staring at Korra, not sure how to take in that information.

"Huh?" Was the only thing she could muster.

"It also frustrated me that you didn't know much about your company, but it seems like your dad keeps you on a short leash."

"I'm just a regular mechanic there." She replied. Googling herself or her family was something she didn't dare do, so she never heard about any of the scandals that the company or her dad were caught up in. Not that she would willingly put herself through that.

"I know that now, and I'm sorry." 

"I'm sorry too." She bit her lip.

"For what?" 

"For being willfully ignorant about a large part of my life."

"The best part about that is, is that you can always change that. Even if it's hard. I know that you'll do the right thing.”

Asami nodded, the adrenaline of kissing Korra was wearing off and was being replaced with mental fatigue. Her brain was fried with all the different emotions she experienced that day and she felt 30 years older.

"Thanks, Korra." 

Korra pulled her hand forward and placed a chase kiss on Asami’s forehead. She shifted them until Asami was leaning on Korra, hands placed just above her hips. It felt right being held like that. She closed her eyes and buried her head in Korra's neck, inhaling her scent. 

The two stayed intertwined and unmoving until it was time to go to bed. Neither wanted to let go but both were afraid they'd come off as too needy or clingy. Asami wanted nothing more than to replace her body pillow with the other girl, and Korra wanted nothing more than to wrap her hands around Asami and keep her close as she slept.

Pained expressions hidden under a careful mask bid each other goodnight, hands lingering as they shared a goodnight kiss, neither wanting to be the first to pull away. When they finally arrived at their rooms and sprawled out against their beds the only thoughts that consumed them as they fell asleep was at how well they fit together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really have to learn to start writing shorter chapters. Originally I wasn't going to have this happen until later, but the time felt right now. I love my bisexuals so much and this chapter was a lot of fun to write and I'm looking forward to more gooey fluff for the next few chapters. Asami is just so dramatic I love it.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!


	9. Hiding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More smut and a little angst because that's apparently all I know how to write. I hope you enjoy!

The next morning was all smiles and giggles. Asami showered and as she got dressed Korra cut up fruit for their breakfast. 

"Do you want to go for a walk today around the property? It's not very big but it's pretty."

"That sounds lovely." Asami cupped her face in her hands as she watched Korra work. 

The sun spilled into the room and illuminated everything just so. Korra was golden in the morning rays and Asami herself had a glow to her.

They got ready, Asami in running tights and an old tee (both borrowed from Korra) and Korra in her usual attire of a sports bra and running shorts. The walk was long and almost unbearably hot. Asami recalled back to when her mother was still alive and would cover her head to toe in sunscreen with hats and sunglasses to boot.

"The sun is the enemy." She would always say.

Asami hated to admit she was right, she never dared to step outside much less anger her mother's spirit.

The only thing that made it better was Korra's hand interlocked with hers. It didn't matter if they were both sweaty and it was almost too uncomfortable to touch.

The grass was browning and the plants looked a little worse for wear, but Korra explained that she couldn't really water them how he wanted to due to the drought.

Eventually, when it got too hot they made a mad dash to the house and ordered pizza, too tired and dazed by the sun to cook a meal. When Asami answered the door she was surprised to find that it was the same teenager who delivered it the first night at Korra's. She thanked him and went on her way.

"I feel like all of the energy was sapped out of me." Asami fanned herself.

"Wanna know the worst part?" Korra sat spread out on the floor by the couch, head not quite touching Asami's thighs.

"Is it the fact that I smell so bad you refuse to sit next to me?"

"No… it's the fact that it's not even 11 yet."

"Can we take another nap please?" Asami pouted.

"We're supposed to be spending time together and cementing our friendship! Not sleeping." Korra protested.

"Sleeping  _ is _ spending time together." Asami whined.

"You just don't want to spend time with me." If she had the energy to do anything she would have flicked Asami's forehead.

Asami rolled over to face Korra as much as she could. "I'm literally glued to your side 24/7. What more do you want from me? Want to shower together? Sleep in the same room?"

"Hmmmm." Korra thought for a second. "A shower would be nice."

"What!?" Asami scrambled to sit at the far end of the couch. That woke her up.

"We're all gross." Korra stated.

"That's not what I was freaking out about!" Asami mumbled.

"Why? Just two friends saving water." Korra looked over at her with a cocked eyebrow, face unreadable. "Unless you don't want to." She stuck her tongue out.

What was the worst that could happen? 

"Just kidding!" Korra laughed and rose to her feet. 

Asami stared after her and felt her hands shake with annoyance. She grabbed the pillow next to her and stuffed it onto her face, screaming her frustrations out. Whatever, it wasn't like she wanted Korra to watch her scrub the sweat from her pits anyways.

She groaned and walked to her room to make sure she was clean. Throughout her shower, she never gave up the tiny bit of hope that Korra would sneak in like in a bad porn movie. When it didn't happen she begrudgingly cut her shower and got dressed in one of her sleeping gowns. It didn't matter that it was noon, she was going to be comfortable and lounge however she wanted.

Korra was sitting at the table drinking tea, a covered cup sitting next to her. Asami walked up behind Korra and blew in her ear, laughing hysterically when Korra spilled her own drink and took Asami's as reparations.

They fell into a comfortable silence as Korra drank her tea and Asami watched. Before they knew it, it began to rain and they were back on the couch; limbs intermingled and Korra's head was resting on Asami's abdomen. Asami had her hair up in a loose bun and Korra's was down and currently occupied by Asami's hands.

"This feels so nice." Korra mused. The rain had a habit of draining her energy. 

Asami couldn't help but be reminded of a cat.

"Can I ask you a question?" Korra all but purred."

"Hmm?" 

"Why did you stop talking to Bolin?" Korra snuggled in closer to Asami.

The hands in her hair stopped abruptly and Asami stiffened up.

"You know why." Asami answered after a second.

"No. You told me that you broke up with your pretty boy and it made you stop talking to Bolin. You didn't tell me why you guys don't talk anymore."

Silence filled the room as she felt Asami shift under her. Korra tightened her grip on the other girl and held on until Asami stopped moving.

"Did you invite me here to smooth things over with Bolin?" 

"You're so distrusting."

"Well, what do you expect? Where did this even come from?"

"I'm not very close with Bolin or anything. I mean he's a cool dude and everything."

"But?" Asami asked.

"You seem so lonely and no offense, touch starved."

Asami's jaw clenched as she tried to hold back her embarrassment. What the fuck was Korra's problem? Obviously, she was lonely and touch starved, but you can't just say that out loud. Especially when you're not very close to someone in the first place. 

"I'm sorry if that's a turn off for you." Asami gently pushed Korra off and made her way to her room.

"Asami!" Korra called after her. 

Shuffling noises followed by the sounds of Korra's bare feet slapping against the tile followed her to her room.

"You don't always have to run away you know." 

Asami shut the door in her face and shuffled onto the bed making sure to completely bury herself in the comforter.

A soft knock came moments later.

"Asami!" Korra's muffled voice called from the hall. "Can I please come in?" When Asami didn't answer, she tried again. "I'm going to come in okay?"

The soft creak of the door echoed throughout the room and soft footprints approached the bed. Korra's heart clenched in her chest at how cute Asami was. Slowly the weight in the bed shifted as Korras found Asami and laid next to her.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that." Korra apologized. Searching out Asami, she settled against the warm mass as the big spoon. Caressing what she assumed was Asami's arm, Korra set her head on the pillow and began talking.

"That was really mean of me. I haven't known you that long but honestly Asami, I kind of see why you don't have many friends."

Asami rolled her eyes under the cover but let Korra continue.

"You run away at any sign of conflict and you don't let yourself be happy. Bolin literally misses you like crazy and will tell anyone with an ear. I'm not going to comment on Mako because I really don't care about that, but I'm betting that Bolin's little wife misses you too."

Asami stayed perfectly still, no indication that she was listening.

"Well, I'm not going to let you do this to me. I haven't met a challenge that I haven't taken head-on yet and I'm not afraid of losing your friendship because I won't. If I have to sit here all night before you talk to me then I will."

Asami stiffened in her position and after what felt like forever her head popped out of the covers; cheeks blushing and eyes glazed over. If Mako was the one that was being stubborn she would have been so annoyed. So, why was it any different with Korra?

A lump formed in her throat as she tried to swallow it down. She knew why. It was glaringly obvious and staring at her directly. But knowing and acknowledging are two different things.

Asami slowly turned around and fit her body against Korra's, slowly inching her way towards that beautiful face.

"All is forgiven." Was all Asami whispered before she captured Korra's lips with her own and melted into her.

It was hungry and desperate like if Asami ever pulled away she would never get another chance. Much to Asami's delight Korra's hands snaked their way around her waist and behind Asami's neck, cradling her forward to deepen their kiss.

If Korra didn't talk, then she wouldn't realize that Asami wasn't worth fighting for. Instead, she would distract her the only way she really knew how.

Asami broke the kiss briefly and removed the straps of her dressing gown. Shimmying it down her body until it was completely off. Korra laid mesmerized by Asami's creamy body, toned stomach, and beautiful perky boobs. 

Nothing could have prepared for Asami for the way Korra looked at her and it took everything in her not to cry. When was the last time that someone looked at her like she was the reason the sun rises? The silk black cheeky panties suddenly felt like the right choice.

Korra reached her hand out and caressed Asami's cheek. "I love your hair down." 

Asami obliged and seconds later her hair was cascading around her shoulders. Korra took a strand and held it up to her nose, eyes fluttering shut as she inhaled her scent. Familiar shampoo mixed with what was unmistakably Asami made her lightheaded.

"I want to make you feel so good. You're so fucking pretty." 

Asami blushed as she suddenly felt exposed. It was so cold in the room and her nipples were so hard that they  _ hurt. _

"Can I touch you?" Korra asked so gently that Asami felt like she was going to break. 

All she could do was nod gently as Korra descended to her neck and drew sweet little moans out of Asami. Her hands came up to cup her breasts, thumbs teasing at her nipples every once in a while.

Asami could do little more than grip the sheets around her to keep grounded. Whatever Korra was doing to her felt like magic.

"You sound so pretty, princess." 

Asami bit back a moan at the nickname and shivered as Korra licked down to Asami's nipples, taking one into her mouth and playing with the other, rubbing it gently in between her fingers.

"Let me hear you, please." Korra asked in between sucks.

Asami whimpered openly and spread her legs, hoping Korra would take the hint.

"If you want me to do something, then you need to tell me." Korra swirled her tongue around a sensitive nipple and slowed her movements so much that it was almost painful.

Asami felt like she was going to burst. She needed more, needed Korra to defile her.

"Please…" Asami huffed. "I need you to touch me." 

"Where?" Korra stopped her movements altogether.

"My clit! Your mouth! Your fingers! Anything please!" She begged.

Korra smirked and lowered herself in between Asami's legs. "All you had to do was ask." 

Korra opened Asami up with her fingers and lapped gently at her folds, settling into a nice rhythm in tune with Asami's moans of pleasure and desperate movements. Holding down Asami's hips, she found her way to the clit, making sure that she found what worked for the raven-haired beauty before hooking one of her legs over Korra's shoulders. 

"God!  _ Fuck _ yes." Asami breathed, head muddled and unable to think of much else. A shiver travelled up her spine and her eyes rolled back as Korra added two fingers into wet heat. Pleasure built up in her abdomen and she clutched the sheets around her as her muscles tightened and orgasmed in Korra's tongue. Thighs shaking and broken moans encouraged Korra further, not daring to change anything she was doing and ruining the first orgasm Asami's had in months.

As Asami relaxed and groaned at the overstimulation Korra came up for air and crawled back up to cradle Asami in her arms, placing loving kisses on the crown of her sweaty head.

"Thank you." Asami panted. 

"The pleasure is all mine." 

After calming down from her high enough to think, she ran her hand up Korra's thigh and squeezed gently. "It's your turn." 

Korra chuckled and squeezed Asami's hand. "Not tonight. I just want to hold you like this." Korra noted Asami's pout and hugged her tighter. "But later, I promise."

Satisfied with this, they both got up and cleaned themselves up only to reunite on Korra's guest bed and crash out in a mess of tangled limbs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who's been reading so far and thank you to everyone who left kudos, comments, subscriptions, bookmarks, or even those that come back to check on it periodically. It honestly means the world to me.
> 
> We are more than halfway done with the story and this chapter is kind of meant to be a transitioning chapter while showing some of Asami's hiding habits. There's only about 6 more chapters in the story give or take but could fluctuate +/- 2-3 chapters depending on how long I make each chapter. It's going to be kind of angsty from here on out but I hope it's worth all of the fluff at the end.


	10. Hyperreal

The next morning Asami woke up alone again, much to her disappointment, and got ready as quickly as she could. It was half-past eight and for the first time in a long while, she was really excited to wake up.

The smell of bacon was strong and the crackling got louder as she rounded the corner into the kitchen. Korra was in her signature tank and joggers, but her hair was in a messy ponytail with most of it falling out of the sides. It was so adorable that Asami couldn't help but snap a quick picture. This a moment that she'd want to relive forever.

"Morning!" Asami walked into the kitchen. 

Korra turned to look at her and was stunned into silence. For once Asami wasn't actually dressed, instead her hair was still in a messy bun from the night before and the most she looks to have done is brush her teeth.

"Is there something in my face?" Asami touched around her cheeks and then went in to sniff herself. "Or do I smell?" 

Korra shook her head excitedly and grabbed her phone, unlocking it to take a picture.

"What are you doing?" Asami asked slowly as Korra clicked away.

"I've literally never seen you not ready, turn your head this way." She ordered. 

Asami did as Korra asked and tried her best to not feel self-conscious. It's not like she didn't like how she looked without being ready, but it was a little hard for her to be so vulnerable around someone else.

"Are you done?" She asked as she took her usual spot at the table. 

"Just one more." Korra stepped behind Asami and switched the phone to selfie mode. Asami instinctively formed her hand into a peace sign and brought it up to her face while Korra's grin took over half of her face.

Then, because Korra is a liar, she turned her face to kiss Asami's cheek and snapped a quick picture. Asami's face was pleasantly surprised and leaned into the kiss. The moment was immortalized forever as a commemoration of their time together.

"You're so beautiful like his, I just had to have a picture."

After Asami made Korra promise to send her the pictures, they ate in blissful content. Thinking back, Asami couldn't remember the last time she ate so many home-cooked meals all at once. Distantly she could hear her phone ring, but this moment with Korra, sitting comfortably in her home and just being domestic was everything she ever wanted.

Suddenly, the wants and needs of others didn't really seem so important. Even her petty issues seemed to be so stupid in the grand scheme of things. Maybe she should just come clean and admit to herself that she wants to be more than just friends with Korra. Even if she said no, the time they spent together would have been worth it.

At least to her it would have been. Asami must have been staring because Korra waved a hand in her face and pushed the loose hairs back into the messy bun. Asami leaned in and placed a light peck to their lips and smiled at Korra's lips, eager to return the favor with more vigor.

"I'm sorry about last night." Asami started. "I was being a brat."

"Hmmm." Korra closed her eyes and crossed her hands over her chest. "Yeah, but I'm not complaining."

They laughed in unison as Asami lightly kicked Korra and got up to rinse her plate.

For some reason, she was more aware of her phone ringing from the guest bedroom and Korra brought it up. "So that's been going off for a while. You wanna get it?"

Asami frowned and creased her brow. "Yeah sorry about that."

No one ever called her. She wasn't even due home for another few days if her math was right, and it always was. Slowly she took off towards the noise and panic rose in her stomach as she realized it was her dad's ringtone.

That's not good. Asami took off in a full sprint and slipped just before she got to her door. Socks and hardwood floors don't match but Asami didn't have time to think about the pain or the inevitable bruising she would have.

The phone stopped ringing as she reached for it and swayed when she saw the 38 missed calls coupled with the messages.

All from Hiroshi.

Before she had a chance to review the messages another call came in, this time from Mako.

She picked up and couldn't help the small hit of relief she felt when she heard his voice.

"Asami! Are you okay? I'm outside right now and a few people are crowding the residence."

What was he talking about?

"I have like a million missed calls from my dad! What happened?" 

"Well to cut a long story short a picture of you at Korra's house is circulating and he found out you weren't at the conference."

That was a lot to take in, so she focused on the only thing she could.

"How did he find out that I wasn't at the conference?" She bit her nails, too engrossed to see Korra kneel beside her to inspect the angry red marks on her legs.

"He paid for your room so the hotel disclosed that you checked out early."

It was bad. So, so, _so_ bad. 

"I'm outside and I told him I was with you and would bring you home, but I think he knows that's a lie."

Tears welled up in Asami's eyes and spilled down her cheeks. Why couldn't she have just _one_ fucking day where she didn't have to worry about the scrutiny of everyone and everything. Taking a deep breath she calmed herself and let Mako know she was on her way.

"Are you okay? You took a nasty fall." Korra wiped away Asami's tears and brought her face to the crook of her neck. 

It was supposed to be comforting, but all it succeeded in doing was reminding her that she was a woman in her mid-twenties who couldn't make her own fucking choices. Korra shouldn't be comforting her because her dad is mad at her, and it made her irrationally angry. A sob ripped through her chest and her hands gripped at Korra searching for purchase. 

"I know you have it to go, but if you need to talk or somewhere to stay _please_ know that you can come back okay?" 

Asami nodded and after a few moments let go. She felt dizzy, like the only thing keeping her grounded was gone. She couldn't shake the feeling that she would never see Korra again if she left.

"I'm gonna go let Mako in so you can get in the car with some privacy." She placed a firm kiss to Asami's forehead and walked out of the room.

Before she knew it, she was packed and in the car, wearing Korra's hoodie. How had she even gotten that on? She was also wearing dark wash jeans and her hair was down. Somewhere along the line her brain turned off and went into autopilot going through the motions until she was in familiar territory. 

The worst part was that she couldn't remember Korra's goodbye 

Mako didn't push her to talk and she was entirely grateful for it. Once she was safely by Mako's side she pulled her phone up and called her dad who strangely, did not answer. Although she should have been relieved, the knot in her stomach got heavier.

Slowly taking out her makeup bag, she got to work painting on her mask to hide away her few days with Korra. What should have calmed her down, filled her instead with an inexplicable sense of loss.

The ride wasn't long and before she knew it she was standing in front of her dad's office with Mako in tow. Bracing herself, she knocked on the door lightly and prayed either every passing second that he wouldn't be here.

But life was cruel.

"Come in." Hiroshi called from the other side of the door, voice completely neutral.

Her heart sank in her chest as she tried to push back the bile that was working its way up her esophagus and put on her usual sweet face.

"Hi dad…" She said quietly.

Hiroshi was sitting behind his desk and motioned the two to sit down on the two uncomfortable-looking chairs in front of him. He probably switched the chairs just for this, knowing how dramatic he was.

Asami walked in and sat down, hearing the soft click at the door followed by Mako sitting in the seat next to her.

"So it's true then." Hiroshi stated. He turned his laptop that revealed a photo of Asami in short black shorts and the very hoodie that she was wearing now.

So it was the pizza guy after all.

"I just want to know why this warranted 40 missed calls." Surprised at how confident she sounded.

"You weren't where you said you would be. You actively lied to me about where you were and got caught at the house of some fucking punk."

Asami flinched at the curse despite the lack of bite in his word.

"Mako you're fired." Hiroshi mentioned off-handedly, never once turning away from Asami.

"Hold on now dad, he literally has nothing to do with this." She sat up straight and narrowed her eyes at her father.

"He lied to me about your whereabouts, sounds like a bad bodyguard to me."

"I was _safe_ and never in a moment of danger. Sounds like a great bodyguard to me." Her voice was tense.

"Mako please pack your bags. I expect you out of here by 5. Please email my assistant with your forwarding address so we can mail you your last check." 

Asami turned to Mako who was white as a sheet. She grabbed his shoulder before he stood up and gave a tight squeeze. 

"I'll fix this." 

Mako nodded soberly and walked out of the room. Once the door shut, Hiroshi began his interrogation.

"What were you doing at that girl's house? Are you seeing her?"

Well, that's a good question, one she might have been able to answer if she spent a little more time there.

"We're friends, dad. I wanted to hang out with her." It wasn't a lie.

Hiroshi visibly relaxed and ran his hand through his hair. "Thank God." He murmured.

Maybe this was the moment that broke her because she couldn't remember where else she could have gotten the nerve to talk back to her father.

"What does that mean?" She questioned defensively.

"It means that I'm glad you're not seeing that girl. She's not good for you and her image is less than favorable."

Maybe it was, but that wasn't a reason for him to call her to his office like she was a child again.

"She's been nothing but kind to me." She assured him.

"She let you be photographed in that… _state."_ He made a face like he swallowed a lemon.

"In shorts and a hoodie? It's hardly what I'd call a scandal. And besides, she didn't know a picture would be taken of me."

"This is why I ask to know who you're with and when, so we can prevent things like this. She's trash, princess. You don't need her or her angry at the world attitude. You've been different since you went to the concert and I know it has something to do with _her_ ." Saying the last word like it physically pained him to do so. "You even broke up with Mako, which I'm not entirely against… but _not_ so you can go running into the arms of trouble."

Asami furrowed her brows and gaped at him offensively. 

"Trouble?!" She was able to croak out. "You don't even know her!" 

"I did some digging. She regularly attends protests and she's quite… vocal about her beliefs."

"That's not a bad thing. I looked you up too you know. Mind explaining to me why there are tons of lawsuits against the company and the ethical practices you allow?"

Hiroshi turned quickly and brought his forefinger and thumb to his lips, indicating for Asami to drop the subject.

"Enough." He boomed. 

Asami hated how much it made her tremble.

"This is why I'm so strict with you. You don't need that stress Asami. Go and get dressed and we won't talk about it again. I'm not mad anymore now that you're home." 

Asami nodded and rose to her feet. Her father had taken a seat and went right back to his work, completely disregarding Asami's presence. Looking back, maybe this was the moment that really broke her when she realized that no matter what and with no amount of obedience would she ever earn her freedom.

She would have to take it.

"No."

Hiroshi looked up and threw a confused look at her. "Excuse me?" The words a dare.

"We are done dad. I quit." She turned to walk out, her words braver than her feelings.

Once she reached the door. She spun around and looked him dead in the eyes. "I'm moving out. You're not going to make decisions for me anymore and I don't want anything from you." She shut the door and made her way to her apartment.

What hurt the most is that her dad made no attempt to stop her. Her whole life revolved around him and he didn't care enough to try to keep her. No bargaining or pleas. She was just something to control. Part of whatever little thing he was currently scheming.

Finding the biggest bag she owned she quickly stuffed as many necessities as she could see through her tear-stained vision and reached for a shoebox containing emergency cash. There was no way she was going to continue using her credit cards or bank accounts that her dad still monitored. That also left the question of her phone, but she would have to worry about that later.

That's when it hit her. 

Where would she go? 

Feeling the panic rise in her chest she grabbed her phone and saw a message from Korra, opening it she smiled and stifled a chuckle as he realized it was a photo she took that morning. Hard to believe that was her a few hours prior.

Calm filled her veins and she gathered her things. She would be fine and she had someplace to go. Another message popped in and Asami read carefully before carrying her bag and walking off the property.

 **Bully** :

im going to a thing for the band

but I'll be back tonight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I lied and updated before mid December. I just got inspired so I had to post. This story was never supposed to be this long or even go in this direction but I'm happy it did.


	11. All Their Words for Glory

She knew that objectively she was smart. How could she not be when she had so much privilege raising her through her life? But as smart as she was, public transportation and ride shares eluded her. 

First, she tried to call a rideshare, but they needed a card and she didn't have one anymore. Then she looked into calling a taxi but they all seemed sketchy. Finally, after an hour of youtube videos on how public transportation in her area works, she boarded a bus and traveled as close to Korra's home that she could get. She found a low-key cafe and changed her clothes so she wasn't literally wearing pajamas. After settling in with a fruity drink she texted Korra to let her know she had a surprise for her. Even though Korra hadn't texted back, she knew that she would at least read it.

Scrolling through the news and social media mindlessly to pass the time, a fan page she followed explained that the band was going to talk last minute on a popular music podcast to promote their anniversary tour, it was even hinted that they would release a new album or EP soon. Asami rolled her eyes. They just finished a tour not too long ago, they wouldn't release new music so soon, would they? If any of their recent release dates were anything to go by, then certainly not. 

Maybe now that they were friends, Korra would be more willing to talk about the band with her. It was the reason Asami even knew about her in the first place, and Korra seemed to be okay with indulging her a bit if the band tees and goodies had anything to do with it. What Asami couldn't understand, however, was why Korra said she had time off for Asami if she knew she had something to do with the band. Maybe it was a last-minute gig or an event that she was going to take Asami to? She made a mental note to ask Korra about it when she saw her again.

Asami opened the text app on her phone and looked at the last message she sent to Korra. It hadn't been responded to but Asami knew that she read it. Of course, Korra wouldn't respond right away, but it would be nice to get a confirmation text. The longer she stared at her phone the more she realized that it probably wasn't a good idea to spring a last-minute "hey I'm not talking to my dad anymore can I crash at your place for a while?" on her. Her mind went blank as she tried to think about how to word it.

After a few solid minutes of staring at her phone screen, she decided to look through her contacts for Mako. He got fired and lost his place to live too, hopefully he found his way out and was with Bolin and Opal. Now that they were a couple of homeless young adults, the animosity she felt towards him seemed to vanish. Not that it was particularly strong after the breakup anyhow.

As her fingers got to work typing out a message, she got a live notification from the podcast that KTK were appearing on was going live. 

Had that much time really passed?

She opened up the app and popped her headphones in to not disturb the other patrons at the coffee shop. The video started off pretty standard, it seemed like the host and the person recording were trying to figure out the video and sound. Since it could probably take a few minutes, Asami decided to buy a small dessert and another drink so she didn't sit on just one drink for the entire time. Her phone stayed on and it looked like they were starting to move around the room. As she paid she glanced back at her phone every so often, barely able to make out the host walking around the studio. I didn't look very big, but even with all the walking, it seemed like they never got anywhere.

Asami went to sit back down at her table to wait for her order and popped a headphone back in. The host was a cute little thing and she really brought a cheery energy to the mundane, she was entertaining even without the band. Then she spotted them. The host entered what looked to be a dressing room where the band was sitting on a long couch. Zhu-Li was running around trying to get things in order and Varrick and Tahno were goofing off.

Asami tilted the phone as if she could will the cameraman to pan over and see Korra. She missed the wide shot from when they entered the room, so she was kind of bummed. The prospect of being able to see Korra made her buzz with excitement. It was the kind of giddy feeling that seemed to envelop her anytime Korra was involved. The host spent a few minutes talking to Varrick and Tahno and spending the next few minutes warding off the younger man's futile attempts at flirting. Asami giggled and shook her head, knowing how persistent Tahno was.

Then, the camera  _ finally  _ panned, and…

Suddenly, she felt really tired. Korra was sitting on the far end of the couch with Kuvira across her lap like the first time she met them. Except this time, they looked comfortable together. Kuvira's arms were laced behind Korra's neck and she was whispering in Korra's ear. It must have been really fucking funny for Korra to laugh loud enough for the microphone to be able to pick it up. But the real punch to the gut was Korra's hand, which was stroking Kuvira's thigh dangerously close to her hips.

"Ma'am." The barista called out to her, waving his hand in her face. 

"I'm so sorry!" She popped out her headphone. "I should have been paying more attention.

"Here's your order. We're closing in about 10 minutes, just to let you know."

Asami looked at the food and drink and suddenly felt sick. The man seemed to notice and offered her a bag. 

"I'm okay." She reassured as she pulled out a large sum of bills from her bag. "Thanks for everything." Her nose stung as she left the bills at the table and collected her belongings to leave.

Once she was safely outside, she threw away her food and sat down at a nearby bench, not caring that it was in front of a busy street. Her head was empty and she couldn't form a coherent thought. Where was she supposed to go next? Maybe Korra was still her friend, but Asami didn't really want to see her right now. She was probably the last person that Mako wanted to see and frankly, death was a better option than having to crawl back to Hiroshi Sato. Maybe freedom really wasn't all it was cracked up to be. 

Right as she was about to curl up into a ball on the bench and fall asleep, her phone rang.

_ Mako _

"Hey." She mumbled into the phone.

"How you holding up?" 

He sounded so warm and comforting and… safe. Memories of a past life when she and Mako were happy flooded her.

"I ran away from home." 

"No shit? Hiroshi's not gonna be happy about that."

"I mean, he didn't stop me as I walked out with a bag full of clothes and emergency cash." 

"He'll come around. You're the only family he has left."

Asami huffed a laugh. "How are you? I'm sorry I didn't call earlier."

"Actually, I'm doing a lot better now than I have in a long time. I'm even staying with Bolin and Opal, gonna mooch off of 'em for a bit before I get back to work."

"I'm happy to hear it, Mako." She smiled into the phone.

"What about you? You going back with Korra?" 

"No, some stuff came up and I'm not gonna see her again for a while."

"Well, that's too bad. Why don't you come and stay with us? I know you feel like you're on bad terms with everyone, but I think you need us as much as we need you. Plus, there's a little surprise waiting for you."

Asami blotted her lips and sighed heavily. Every ounce and bit of energy had gone from her. She could no longer refuse or run from her problems anymore.

"Please." Was all she could say.

"Do you need help calling an Uber? I can send one to you, just send me your location." They exchanged their goodbyes and Asami sent her location as soon as she could. 

She should have been more anxious in her situation, but every bone in her body was screaming and begging for her to shut down. Mako sent the description of the driver and car and instructed her to ask the driver who they were picking up and how to be safe. Truthfully, anyone could have picked her up, she just got in the first car that stopped and prayed that it was the driver that Mako sent. Some deity was still looking out for her because after a short drive she was standing outside of Bolin and Opal's home. It has been so long since she'd been here and a wave of nostalgia washed over her. 

The door opened before she could even knock and a  _ very  _ pregnant Opal opened the door. Asami stood in a very deer in the headlights way before the tears started spilling down her bare face. Before she knew what was happening, two arms wrapped around her and pulled her down. Asami held onto Opal as tight as she could and collapsed against the doorway. It felt like if she let go, Opal would fly away from her. Bolin and Mako stood back, letting Opal comfort Asami in a way only a best friend could. 

It was all a blur from then and somehow, Asami ended up in a familiar bed in a familiar room of a familiar house with a familiar hand weaving its way through her hair. The tears were still fresh and her head hurt, but it was the best feeling ever. If the world ended tomorrow then Asami would be fine with that. Her breathing evened out to the sounds of Opal's soft humming and she succumbed to the surrounding calm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas Eve! I gift to you, angst! 
> 
> We're almost done with the story and now that I have a fair bit of time off work I can dedicate my time to writing. If I don't get distracted by Hades that is. 
> 
> Thank you for sticking by me this long and thank you for reading! I hope you like this short chapter ☺


	12. Chapter 12

Throbbing pain punctured the nerves behind Asami's eyes as she woke up the next morning. The worst part about crying was that she always seemed to dehydrate herself after the fact. Rolling over on her back she reached for her phone to check her messages.

Dead.

Well, she did kind of crash out the second she got into bed. The memories of the day before came trickling in one by one starting with her leaving home to watching Korra and Kuvira snuggle up on live stream for the whole world to see.

Pinching the bridge of her nose she sat up and breathed deeply, willing the pain in her head to go away. Her bags were on a chair across the room and if she remembered correctly the shower was directly across the hall from where her room was. After choosing a simple pair of dark wash jeans and a simple tank top she quickly ran over to the shower and let the water wash over her.

No more. No more running from her problems and no more keeping quiet in matters that were important to her. She basically missed Opal's entire pregnancy and huge milestones in Bolin's career, not to mention Mako. She may not have been in love with him anymore but she kept him miserable by making him stick around her dad's shitty company. All for what? Her ego? Because she was scared? Whatever it was, she was done.

She stayed in the shower longer than she needed to, letting the water run from her scalp to her feet. Was there a better feeling than disassociating under the heat of running water? After she was done she brushed her teeth and got dressed. She was going to face her friends,  _ gods _ she hoped they still wanted to be friends, and beg them for forgiveness.

As soon as she stepped into the living room her nose began to sting and she had to fight the tears away. On the couch were Bolin and Opal, totally entranced by what was going on with her belly. Mako's soft laughs filled the room as Bolin kissed Opal's belly and baby-talked the fetus.

She could have had this instead of the complete and total isolation that she bestowed upon herself.

"Hey." She called out with a wobbly smile.

"Hey." Opal called back with a small smile. It was tight and strained and it sent a chill down Asami's spine. 

Asami couldn't remember the last time Opal was that upset at anybody, much less her. She deserved every bit of it though. Bolin must have caught on because he stood up and motioned to the backyard. "Mako, bro! You mind helping me out in the backyard? I got ugh… a thing I need to take care of." 

Mako rolled his eyes and stood up from his place to follow. "Sure." Within seconds they were gone and Opal and Asami were alone again.

"Thanks for letting me spend the night…" Asami trailed off as she shifted her weight uncomfortably. 

"No problem. How did you sleep?" Opal patted the seat next to her and shifted to face Asami.

Not wanting to keep Opal waiting, Asami quickly moved to take a seat next to the expecting mother. "Well, I guess? I woke up with a massive headache though."

"But you're better now?" Opal asked intensely.

"Yeah, it's just a dull ache."

"Good, good." Opal breathed. 

There was a silence before Opal turned to her with a big smile. She raised her hand and a loud crack was heard when it connected with Asami's arm.

"Ow!" Asami grabbed her arm and stared bug-eyed at Opal.

"That was for ghosting me after the concert. And this-" Opal smacked her again. "is for ignoring us at Bolin's event." Opal continued to slap Asami across her arms, each hit softer than the last. "And these are for everything else that I'm mad about that I can't articulate or think of right now."

"Okay, okay I get it!" Asami tried to shield herself away from Opal's oncoming attacks.

"No! You don't! What the  _ hell _ is wrong with you Asami?! You're my best friend and it was so easy for you to throw me away like that." 

"Opal! I could never throw you away!" 

"Well, you did!" Opal stopped and balled her fits in her lap. "But you didn't  _ think _ about how you were affecting us, were you? You freaked out and ran like you always do and left everyone else to pick up the pieces because you were too scared to go and face your stupid fears."

Asami rubbed her arms and averted her gaze. She opened her mouth to speak but it seemed like Opal wasn't done yet. "I'm so proud that you told your dad to go fuck himself and I know that it probably wasn't easy to have to face all of this time alone, but you left me without my best friend during what's supposed to be one of the greatest times of my life."

Asami had no more tears left to cry, otherwise, she would be bawling. Opal was breathing hard like she just sprinted a mile.

"Opal, I'm so,  _ so  _ sorry for flaking on you." Asami started. She turned to look Opal directly in the eye and held herself. "You're right, this was all because I was too scared to tell you that I broke up with Mako."

Opal arched an eyebrow but said nothing. 

"I thought that you two wouldn't want to see me anymore, so instead of waiting for you to reject me, I ran away." Asami's hands fell into her lap. "I didn't think about how it would affect you guys, I didn't even want to think about it myself. It was easier to think that you just hated me and forgot all about me.

Silence followed by the most intense stare that Asami had ever seen on Opal followed. It was almost unbearable until Opal finally spoke up. "I'm too tired for this." Opal sighed and rubbed her stomach. "I know you're not selfish and I know that you were in fight or flight mode, but when you left it made me feel like you were only hanging out with me because you had to, and it was right after you got concert tickets from Bolin, so what were we supposed to think?!"

It dawned on her that she never really thought about it like that. She was so involved in her own head that she didn't take 10 seconds to see what she'd done to her best friends. Mako didn't ruin anything. She did.

"I will never be able to apologize to you fully. I fucked up so bad and instead of fixing it, I just destroyed everything around me even more. You deserve better than what I gave you and I hope that you will allow me the chance to be able to make it up to you."

Opal tried to cross her legs but failed when she realized her belly was in the way. 

"I don't want to make this about me. I'm sorry for hurting you and missing the greatest news ever. May I?" Asami reached her hands towards Opal's belly, hesitating until Opal nodded. "Oh! I felt it move!" 

Opal giggled and placed a hand over Asami's. "I forgive you because you're like my sister, but you do this again and I'm going to beat you down. Do I make myself clear?"

Asami nodded and removed her hand from Opal's belly. 

"Next time, I'm not giving you space either. You'll just think that we hate you." Opal sighed. "But you have to fight for our friendship too, this cannot be a one-way streak."

"You're right. I'm going to try harder from now on. No more running."

"Good!" Opal finally cracked one of her warm smiles. Gods, Asami missed that smile.

"I guess I should apologize to Bolin now, huh?" 

"Nah, he forgave you a long time ago." Opal waved her off. "Plus, he's been keeping tabs on you via Korra. Nothing too personal, he just wanted to make sure you weren't dead."

Mixed feelings swirled in Asami's chest. She was relieved that Bolin wasn't upset at her, but was Korra only talking to her because of Bolin? Was this about to be another Mako situation? 

It was too early and she was too tired to think about it further. No more running away, but one thing at a time. She could only handle so much.

"Help me up, I'm craving some pickles." Opal tore her from her thoughts. After Asami picked her up she made her way outside to the brothers who seemed to be in the middle of a heated topic.

Opening the sliding glass doors, Asami confirmed that they were discussing a popular show on a streaming service. 

"Hey again." She interrupted with a nervous smile.

"Asami!" Bolin jumped to his feet and wrapped his arms around her. "I missed you so much!"

Asami embraced him back. "I missed you too buddy. I'm so sorry, it won't happen again."

"Nothing to forgive." He gave her one last squeeze before letting her go and pulling out his chair for her. "I'm gonna go make some breakfast, so you relax out here."

Before she was able to thank him the door slid shut with him on the other side.

"How you feeling?" Mako asked her from across the table. 

"A little worse for wear but better for it if that makes sense."

He huffed a laugh and crossed his legs as he leaned back in the chair. "Yeah, it does." 

There was a pause before Asami spoke. "I'm sorry you got fired." She played with her overgrown hair. It was time for a haircut.

"It's okay, that job hadn't been fun for a while anyway." He offered a small smile.

"I'm also sorry about how I left things between us."

"I think both of us have things to apologize for, but we don't have to hash it all out today. You're probably exhausted and honestly, so am I." He rubbed his hands over his face. "I'm sorry that I wasn't who you needed me to be and got defensive when you tried telling me about it."

Asami shook her head. "I'm sorry that I waited to voice everything until we were breaking up… and I'm sorry that I flaked on us once we were done."

"All is forgiven." He sighed. "Thanks for opening up now."

"Thank  _ you  _ for always coming in and saving me during my worst times." She looked away and flipped her hair over her shoulder.

Birds chirped in the air and filled the silence. There was nothing else to say for the moment. There was always time for apologies and talks later, especially when neither of them was the sentimental type with each other.

Bolin opened the door and Asami turned to look at him. "Hey Asami, I don't mean to be involved in your love life or anything, but Korra is asking about you."

Asami sighed and put her head on the table. "Okay?"

"Can I let her know you're okay? That you're here? She seems really worried."

Asami stayed still for a second. Her brain was completely fried and she couldn't muster up the brain cells to form a coherent thought.

"Yeah, that's fine." She said without moving. "I just don't want to talk to her on an empty stomach."

Bolin laughed and typed away on his phone. "Food's almost done." He replied and shut the door once more to get back to cooking.

Mako raised an eyebrow but said nothing as Asami turned to lay her cheek flat on the table's surface. No more running away, but hopefully, Korra didn't show up so soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The fact that ya'll think this story has over 300 kudos astounds me. When I started I never thought that I would even reach 100 so thank you so much!
> 
> That being said, we're almost done! I hope that you enjoy this chapter ☺


	13. Chapter 13

Much to Asami's relief, Korra didn't show up immediately. In an effort to keep her dad from tracking her, and because she didn't want to use something he'd bought her, her phone remained off for the entirety of the time she'd been away from her former home. It was going on 5 days that Asami had been with them and it was everything she'd ever wanted in a family and more. As the days passed Opal was getting closer to her due date and Bolin was at her every beck and call. When Bolin wasn't around it was Asami or Mako that gave in to her every whim.

More than anything it felt amazing to have her best friend back. The second day she was there was a little awkward, to say the least. Asami tried her best to keep to herself to not bother Opal, but realized what she was doing and opened up to her about what happened when they were apart.

She talked about the solitude that she endured after the trip to Vegas, how bad it felt to have Mako work for her when they weren't on the best of terms, the night of the premiere, and how she spent time with Korra and how that blew up with her dad. As much as it made her blush she even disclosed the more romantic and provocative parts of her time there. Opal was all ears at that, it'd been a while since they talked about anything sex-related, both preferring not to know about their brother-in-law's sex life.

"Okay so, you slept with her and then went to talk to your dad, are you guys dating or?" Opal dragged out the last word as she rubbed her belly. 

"Okay so here's where I  _ might _ be the bad guy. After everything went down with my dad I went to a little cafe and was waiting to ask if I could stay with her. I know she told me yes so I wasn't too pressed." Asami took a deep breath and continued. "While I was waiting there was a notification that the band was going live so I tuned in and um, I saw Kuvira draped across her lap."

Asami paused at the squeeze in her chest. It hurt to think about and she'd tried to not remember for as long as she could, but there was no escaping it under Opal's gaze. 

"Okay? Like they were at the concert? I didn't even remember that honestly, are they dating?"

"Not according to Korra. She said, quote, 'we're just like that', unquote." Asami raised her fingers into air quotes.

"Could've fooled me," Opal mumbled.

"Thank you! And not only that, Korra's hand was like, stroking Kuvira's thighs while they were talking in the interview. I feel like I was some fucking side piece that she found and conquered."

"Don't jump to conclusions, it could be that we just don't have the entire picture. What if they do fool around? It wasn't like you guys defined the relationship and were exclusive."

Damn it, Opal had her there. It wasn't like they were dating or girlfriends, as much as Asami would like that. It didn't change the fact that she felt somewhat taken advantage of. Lost in her thoughts Asami almost didn't hear Bolin stepping into the living room.

"Hey Asami, Korra's asking about you again. I try to keep it as vague as I can but she's getting really antsy."

Asami sighed dramatically and rubbed at her eyes. It has been a few days since they last talked and she'd been able to get a fair amount of sleep since then. If there was a time to meet and hash themselves out then this was it. Just days ago she was so glad that she even made a new friend and now she felt gross and betrayed. It wasn't like they were dating, so she really didn't have anything to be mad about. So, why did she feel the uneasiness in her stomach? When they talked, where should they be? Going to Korra's with no way to get back riddled Asami with anxiety and having Korra come over to a home full of other people to what was a deeply intimate conversation made her queasy. It wasn't like they could choose a public place either and she didn't want to displace Opal when she was so big already.

"Asami!" Opal called and shook her shoulder lightly. "Come back to us, I can see you spirling."

"I'm sorry, I'm just trying to think about where we'd meet…" Asami trailed off as she continued her thoughts.

"Obviously here. You need moral support and I refuse to let you put yourself in a situation where you're afraid to say no."

It would seem that the maternal instincts kicked in early.

"Where will you guys go?" 

"Bolin and I have a bedroom that I've been spending a lot of time in lately,"

"Gross."

"And Mako's out getting groceries right now. You guys can talk in your room without fear of someone overhearing you."

Asami looked over to Bolin, nervousness floating around her eyes.

"I'll tell her to come here. Wouldn't want you to get kidnapped by a feral lesbian." He chuckled and typed a response.

Seconds later a text notification was heard and Asami's throat tightened.

"She'll be here in 10 minutes." Bolin quickly put his phone away and extended his arm to Opal. "We'll get out of your hair." He smiled as he led his wife down the hall.

"Thank you." Asami gave them a wobbly smile and sunk further into the couch. 10 minutes felt like 10 hours as she chewed on her bottom lip. When the doorbell rang she all but jumped up and ran over to a nearby mirror. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun and her face was completely devoid of makeup, every freckle and discolored imperfection on her face showing. She straightened her shirt as much as she could and pulled down the shorts she'd been wearing for 3 days straight until it was what she thought was an appropriate length.

The doorbell rang again and tore her from her thoughts. Taking a deep breath she opened the door and squinted at the harsh midday sunlight that flooded her vision. When she was able to adjust she drank in the sight of Korra dressed in a black tank and dark wash jeans that were ripped at the knee. 

"Oh thank God." Korra's keys jingled in her hands as she ran them through her hair. "You weren't answering my phone calls and I was worried that your dad did something to you." Relief lit up Korra's face as she looked onto Asami adoringly.

Asami couldn't help but let her walls down partially. Especially when Korra looked at her like that.

"And I know Bolin said you were okay and I know he has no reason to lie but I needed to see you in person to have some peace of mind." 

It was cute to see her rambling.

"Come in." Asami stepped back to let Korra into the house. Shutting the door behind her, she took off towards her room and heard Korra's footsteps behind her. Once they were inside she closed the door and locked it behind her quietly to make sure they weren't disturbed.

"Hi." Asami greeted from the door.

"Hi." Korra smiled warmly. "How are you feeling?" 

"Better." Asami gave a small, tired smile in return and walked towards the bed. 

"That's great! How did it go with your dad?" Korra eyed Asami as she sat down on the bed.

"Pretty anticlimactic, he essentially said he was disappointed in me and I left. Didn't look back and he didn't even try to stop me." Asami bit back a smile at Korra’s wince. As much as it hurt to realize that her dad didn’t consider her an entirely separate being from him, Korra’s concern was endearing.

Korra knit her brows together and huffed, cheeks puffing out ever so slightly. "Your dad is an asshole, sorry you had to deal with that…" she trailed off before gathering the courage to speak again. "Did he take away your phone? Is that why you haven't been answering my calls or texts?" 

"Kind of, not really," Asami answered honestly. While she was tired and didn't want to have this conversation, maybe it would feel better to talk it out.

"Kind of? What happened?" 

"I mean, he didn't take it but I don't want him to try and track me or something." Asami shrugged.

"Oh, okay." Korra looked down at her shoes. "Because it kind of felt like you were ignoring me." She forced a laugh and rubbed the back of her neck with her hand.

The silence that filled the space between them was enough of an answer for Korra. She looked up at Asami to find her legs and arms crossed, squinting at the corner of the room.

"Are you mad at me or something? I know before you left was a little rough but I thought we were on okay terms. I was even hoping you would come and stay with me in case it all blew up, not that I wanted it to. We were having fun and I thought we could continue that."

Asami shifted uncomfortably and felt damp and hot all of a sudden. It was like her body was going into flight or fight to combat an enemy that wasn't there. "I was going to call you, but you had that thing." She mumbled.

"Thing?" Korra cocked her head to the side. 

"The podcast interview thing?" 

Korra paused for a few seconds before straightening her head and gasping quietly, mouth forming a little 'o'. "Oh! Yeah, that one. What about ?"

Asami blinked at her and felt her stomach sink. "I saw you." 

"Yeah? That was the point of the event."

"I saw you with  _ Kuvira. _ " Asami spat. 

"And?" Korra delivered with the same energy, shoulders tensing and legs spreading to gain balance. It felt like she would pounce any second.

_ And?! _ Asami's breath hitched as she clenched and unbleached her jaw. As much as she hated to admit it, Korra was right. Asami didn't have any authority to tell Korra what to do. Maybe she was the stupid one for catching feelings.

"Whatever," Asami whispered and stood up to walk towards the door.

"Asami no." Korra stepped in front of her while making sure to keep her distance. "Tell me what's going on. You saw me and Kuvira and what?" Blue eyes bore into emerald and Asami felt her heart rate pick up. She took a step back and willed her chest to stop rising so rapidly.

"Do you usually make it a habit to sleep with your fans?" The second those words came out of her mouth she regretted them. She didn't mean it and now she was going to drive away the thing that finally gave her the courage to speak up.

Like a lightning strike, Korra physically lurched back and her face contorted into a hurt pinch. "Where the fuck did that come from?"

"You were feeling her up while she was on your lap! After we fucked around, was it just a game to you?! How long would it take the little rich girl to spread her legs for you?"

"So then did you only sleep with me because you hero-worshipped me, or because I was the only one around like Mako was?" Korra's eyes narrowed and her voice deepened dangerously. "Because we could go around and around all day if you want."

"Fuck you," Asami said softly. Tears were beginning to well in her eyes and she stood up and walked to the door.

"No," Korra blocked the door. "You're going to sit down and we're going to talk about this like the adults that we are." 

"I'd rather go back to my dad." 

"You don't mean that."

"If I don't have to look at you anymore."

" _ Enough _ !" Korra raised her voice, startling Asami. "I know what you're doing and I'm not going to let you. We can sit here and trade mean words all day but I refuse to play this game with you. I spent enough time with you to see that you do this to sabatosh anyone getting close to you." Asami flinched at the words and opened her mouth to say anything to stop Korra. "I'm not done," Asami closed her mouth and glared at the other woman. "I  _ really _ like you Asami. I want to date and talk and cuddle and I want to see if this is something that could come to fruition. If you honestly want nothing to do with me, then I'll leave you alone, but if I'm right, then you want this too. I know you don't think you deserve to be happy, but you do and I'm not going to accept anything less."

Asami's brain short-circuited as Korra took one of her hands in hers and brought it to her mouth for a light kiss. "And neither should you."

Pins pricked underneath her skin and her chest tightened, she didn't know if she was feeling numb or panicked. Can you feel both at the same time?

"Okay?" Korra asked, gaze unwavering.

Asami stared back and after a few seconds, she took a breath and relaxed her shoulders. "Okay." They made their way back to the bed and say across from each other, there was no escaping each other.

"First things first, what made you so upset about Kuvira?"

"Would you have liked it if you saw Mako on my lap while I gently caressed his leg?"

"I'm not going to lie, I would be delighted to see that." Korra tried her best to stifle a laugh. 

Asami but back a smile and coughed to mask her giggle. 

"I mean, he's not much taller than you and he would be so emasculated that it would be so funny." 

"You know what I mean!" Asami was openly laughing now.

"I know where you're coming from, but Kuvira and I don't have a history behind us. We're friends and we're touchy and that's it. I don't have a reason to lie to you."

Asami chewed her bottom lip and fiddled with her hands on her lap. Korra was right, if she wanted a one and done thing then she wouldn't have come searching for her.

"That's why I didn't let you do anything to me after you finished. I know you were trying to deflect by having sex, but if it continued I was afraid you would just feel taken advantage of. And to be completely honest, you would have been, especially in the state you were in."

Asami physically reeled back and turned away from Korra, eyes wide and lips pressed into a thin line. "I guess I never thought about it that way."

"How about this, I want to be your friend and I hope you want to be mine. I know you're dealing with a lot of things, but I want to be here with you to sort it all out."

"I'd like that," Asami answered after a brief silence.

"Do you need someplace to stay? Anything that I can help you with?"

"A job would be nice…" Asami mumbled and played with the end of her shirt.

"Done! We could use a mechanic or lighting engineer for our shows if you're interested. It'll be like you're a part of the band and we'd be together more often."

Asami's eyebrows shot up and her hair fell in between her fingers. "You really don't have t-"

"I mean, we can't pay you as much as you're probably used to but I promise it'll be a fair wage."

Pausing for a moment, Asami considered what it would mean to be able to work for Korra. They'd be seeing each other a lot and possibly be traveling with them. If they had another fight then she'd be jobless and alone again. It would require a lot of work on her part, especially when her livelihood was on the line, but maybe that's exactly what she needed to get her shit together. Plus, it would be nice to see Tahno and the kids again.

"If you'd have me and if you're serious about the offer, then I'd love to." 

Korra erupted in her signature crooked grin and pumped her arms in the air, loud wooing startling Asami from the sudden mood shift. "How about we discuss the details later, like during dinner?" She asked shamelessly.

"Oh, so you're HR and my boss now?" Asami quirked an eyebrow.

"Well, let's call it a recruitment dinner then."

"I don't know if that's a good idea… don't companies have policies against staff dating?" 

"You don't technically work for us yet, so I'll just have to woo you before you sign the onboarding forms, huh? Also, what does it matter, I'm literally a star and I can do whatever I want." Korra ended confidently.

"Hmmm, I'm not easy you know. I can be  _ very _ demanding." Asami teased.

"Good thing that you're with the effort and more." Asami didn't notice how far Korra closed the distance between them until their knees were touching g and he could feel Korra's words vibrating in her chest.

Asami felt wrecked, what did it feel like to be worth anything that she didn't actively work for. She always had to earn her affections with her dad and even with her friends, so why was Korra just ready to give it to her, no questions asked with nothing down? As much as she didn't want to dwell on it, they would have to revisit this at a later time.

"Ask me then, properly this time." Asami's eyes flicked from Korra's eyes to her mouth, leaning over to feel the other girl's warmth.

"Asami Sato," Korra grabbed Asami's hand and squeezed. "Will you go on a date with me?" 

"Yes," Asami answered and closed the gap between them, feeling instantly comforted and warm in those soft lips. 

Maybe everything was going to be alright after all. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had the fight scene planned out since the third chapter and I'm glad I finally got to write it. This is technically the end of the story with an epilogue coming up to give a glance at their future. I'm eternally greatful for the comments, kudos, and subs this story has received as this was my first time coming back into writing. I hope you guys liked it and thank you for your patience!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snipits of a better life.

** First Date **

"How are you gonna be in your late 20's and never been on a first date?" Asami softly berated herself in the mirror as she applied a brighter shade of her favorite lipstick. 

"Stop beating yourself up, you've been on dates." Opal sat on the tub next to her.

They were in the master bathroom getting Asami ready for her recruitment date with Korra. Opal had given birth not too long after Asami and Korra's little talk and the bathroom door could only muffle out the sounds of her son so much. 

"I love Kai more than anything in the world, but I need a break." Opal rubbed her eyes.

Being that she still lived with them rent-free, Asami made it a point to help out with the newborn as much as she could. Truthfully, she really loved getting to spend time with the kid. He ad Bolin's green eyes and Opal's dark brown hair. Every day she felt so lucky that she got this back, a chance to choose her own family and be able to experience what a healthy family looks like.

"Bolin and Mako can handle him." Asami shot her a sympathetic look. "You have milk already pumped for him so you can just sleep the rest of the night."

"No more baby talk! I want to talk about your hot date!"

"What's so hot about it? She's gonna talk to me about working with the band at a diner near her house."

"Yeah but it's still a date! You're even spending the night with her." She wiggled her eyebrows at Asami.

"Only because I don't want to wake up the baby as I stumble to my room if we get home late."

"Or because you want your back blown out." 

"If you weren't 5 weeks postpartum I would tackle you." 

Hearing Opal laugh calmed her nerves a bit, it was still kind of tense between them sometimes, especially when the new mom hadn't slept due to a new baby. Helping out with Kai seemed to buy her some brownie points and she would take all that she could get. Opal was even nice enough to allow Asami a cute dress. It wasn't going to a movie premiere, but packing in a hurry hadn't left her to take many cute clothes with her, especially date clothes.

"Why don't you think you've ever had a first date?" Opal asked once she calmed down.

"Mako was literally paid to be with me 24/7 and most of our bonding was done at home or in cars or while I was doing other things. I don't think he ever asked me to go out before we made it official. And once we were, anytime we went out it felt like he was billing for it. I know he wasn't, but it wasn't the most ideal dating situation." 

Opal watched her apply her mascara and smiled over at her friend. She'd come a long way from when they first met 

"You're gonna have so much fun. Does Korra know it's your first date?"

"No! I don't want her to think I'm a lover. Plus, I don't need a big fancy thing. It's special knowing that it's her." She mumbled.

"Wow, I might be lactose intolerant with all that cheese. 

A rogue middle finger was her only response as Asami exited the bathroom to grab her bag and shoes. For the first time since Kai was born, she'd totally drowned him out. If good signs existed, this one was definitely it.

"Korra's outside so I'm gonna head out. I'll see you later." Asami waved without so much as looking at Opal.

"Aren't you gonna take an overnight bag?"

"Don't need one!" Asami called out behind her with a lingering smirk on her lips.

*

The ride to the diner was spent in comfortable silence. Everything between the two had already been said and the lingering spark of 'What's next' hung between them as they rode towards their future. Most surprising of all was that when Korra arrived she switched to the passenger side to allow Asami to drive. All of the late-night tasks where Asami revealed that she liked to drive because it was one of the only times she ever felt like she had control and freedom came in handy. Korra was a surprisingly good listener and she knew how to apply it to their yet-to-be-determined relationship.

The diner was quiet and despite being quite empty, had enough going on so that conversations couldn't be heard. They picked out a booth in the corner near a window to sit at and were immediately greeted by a waitress. Once they ordered their meals they were left alone again and Korra reached over and squeezed one of Asami's hands. The touch immediately filled her with warmth, it'd been a while since they'd seen each other due to Korra's busy schedule and Kai being born.

"I've missed you," Asami said in the smallest voice.

"I've missed you too." Korra smiled softly at her.

"So, what's this about me being a techie on your crew?" 

"I told you, the job's yours if you want it."

"I think I'm gonna take you up on the offer," Asami squeezed Korra's hand a little harder. "I'm still a bummer over at Opal's and I feel bad about mooching off of them."

Korra laughed and ran a thumb across the other girl's thumb. "I don't think they mind."

The waitress was back with their food and they talked about anything and everything in between bites and laughing fits. It felt just like all of their late-night conversations, but the best part was that she got to see Korra's face and notice her little quirks. Like the fact that Korra pushed around the food on her plate as she got full or the fact that she tended to play with her loose hair when she laughed. Little things that she found herself feeling lucky to know about.

"Korra," before she could think about it the words were out of her mouth. "I want to be your girlfriend."

Metal clanked against ceramic as Korra dropped her fork in surprise and let out a soft gasp. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, I mean I think we need to iron out a few kinks but I want this." Asami smiled brightly at Korra, face the slightest bit flushed. "I want you."

"I mean, I was gonna wine and dine you for a bit first but this works too." Wiping her face with their napkin, Korra took out a few bills and left them at the table. "I guess I should still show you a good time though." She stood from the booth and winked.

"Oh? You're too kind." Asami laughed and took Korra's extended hand. 

"What are girlfriends for?" Interlaced their fingers and kissed her on the cheek, Korra led her out and thanked the hostess as they got back into the car. This time Korra was in the driver's seat.

"Where are we going?" 

"You'll see."

*

Asami closed her eyes through the short drive despite Korra's insistence that she did not need to do that. It was just more fun that way. Plus, it gave her the chance to doze off if she needed to. As cute and wonderful as Kai was, he was a little hell demon when he wanted to be.

Upon arrival, she opened her eyes and looked around. They were at a beautifully lit park with fairly sting lights wrapped around benches and trees. Looking a little longer she noticed a small lake with a bridge arching over its most narrow parts reflecting the moonlight so brilliantly.

Asami exhaled softly and walked towards the bridge with Korra following not too far behind. Once she reached the lake she broke out into a full-out sprint towards the bridge. Taking it as a challenge Korra took off after her and quickly outran her with a breathless laugh over her shoulder. Asami was laughing just as hard with a smile so big that it looked like it hurt her rosy little cheeks.

"I like to come here after I've been cooped up at home too long." Korra slowed down when she reached the center of the bridge and leaned over the handrail to take a breath.

"I can see why." Asami was more out of breath than she was. "It's so pretty here! I'm surprised there aren't more people."

"It's a private park near my home," Korra explained as she took in the sight of a panting and flushed Asami. It was like a painting carved out of her wildest dreams. 

"This might sound stupid but, this is my first date ever." Asami approached her and leaned on the rail next to her. Making sure to look anywhere but Korra she decided against her intuition and decided to lay her heart bare. This wouldn't work unless she was honest with herself and with Korra.

If she were looking she would have seen the other girl's eyebrows shoot straight up into her hairline. "Seriously? I would have planned something a little more romantic than dinner at some dive and a little park."

"It doesn't matter what we did honestly. This is perfect and above all, I'm glad it was with you." It was Korra's turn to blush. If the park were any more illuminated then Asami might have seen it. "Even if this doesn't work out between us, I would have wanted it to be you anyways." She turned and gave a shy smile to Korra. "You've been the only one who could set me straight and I'll always be thankful for that."

Korra leaned over and rested her head against Asami's shoulder. "I'm glad it was me too."

They shared a silent moment in the gentle night's air, Korra eventually shifted to encase Asami in her arms and hug her from behind. Neither girl had ever felt so secure, so  _ rig _ ht. They fit together so perfectly and it was almost like the elevator incident all over again.

But this was better, this was caring and wanting and just enjoying each other.

"Are we really doing this?" Korra was the one who broke the silence first.

"I want this, I just think it's important that we set some ground rules first." Asami leaned back into Korra's embrace and continued looking onto the lake. "Like, I know you and Kuvira are close, but I don't know if I'm comfortable with the physical side of your friendship."

"Say no more," Korra placed a kiss on Asami's neck and smirked at the shiver. So sensitive. "I'm not losing anything by cutting that off." 

"Thank you. You know you can set rules too? It doesn't just have to be a one-way streak."

"I think you've had enough of rules to be honest I think instead of calling them rules, they should be expectations. I won't be touchy with Kuvira not because I'm not allowed to, but because I no longer have a desire to. Our relationship is too important to me to lose you over something like that."

Asami nodded and her hands came up to lay atop of where Korra's connected at her waist. "You're right, sorry."

"Don't be," Korra squeezed. "That's the language you were used to. We can learn from each other and grow from here. I don't want to make rules with you because I'm only here as long as you want me and the only expectation that I have is that you try and be open with me. If we need to get you help like a therapist or something then we can do that."

There was another pause. "I don't deserve you," Asami said softly and continued before Korra could protest. "But I'm gonna be selfish and keep you for myself anyways. I'm just gonna have to learn how to be the girl you deserve." 

"How did I get so lucky?" Korra placed kiss after kiss across the back of Asami's neck and shoulders and held tighter as Asami erupted into a fit of giggles and tried to pry herself away.

"It tickles!" She squealed. "I'm gonna fall! Stop!" She thrashed around harder and bumped into the rail causing them both to fall over and land onto the shallow water surrounding them. 

With only the moonlight illuminating the lake, they both stood up to break the surface of the water and stare at each other. Korra looked so good wet that she couldn't even be mad about possibly having her phone ruined. 

"I hate you." Asami giggled

"I aim to make this the most memorable first date in existence." Korra made her way over to Asami and reached out to her. 

Asami moved further from her grasp and walked towards the shore of the park. "Don't touch me."

Korra recognized that tone, the challenge that dripped from her shivering teeth. Before she could make a move Asami bolted from the lake and ran towards the car. It took Korra approximately 3.5 seconds to catch up to her and wrap her arms around her waist, picking her up into a breathless embrace. 

Korra didn't care that they were both soaked to the bone or that her car would inevitably be ruined by it. All that mattered at the moment was that they were having fun. Water dripped from wet hair into the seats and barely had enough time to dry by the time they arrived at Korra's home. They both rushed into the shower, peeling away damp clothing and hiding themselves in the steam of scalding hot water.

It started out innocently enough with Asami standing beneath the stream and letting it run through her hair and body, making sure to wash away the mud and moss of the lake. Korra joined shortly after and hip bumped her out of the way. It always started with a fight, in this case, the loser had to stand in the cold part of the shower. Neither of them would lose as they were pulled towards each other in an entangled mess kissing underneath the stream. 

It started out slow and gentle and quickly worked its way to an intensely passionate show of affection. Heat followed every touch and bodies were left tingling as Korra worked her way from Asami's mouth down her jaw and neck. 

"Turn around." Korra licked a long stripe up Asami's neck and bit back a moan as Asami shivered. 

She did as she was told and Korra's hips pressed up against Asami's ass. Suddenly her hands were all over the other girl, groping and teasing everywhere she could. The reactions that she elicited were making Korra's brain turn to mush with want. A hand found its way into one of Asami's perky pink nipple and pinched at the bud while the other hand slid down past her hips and through her folds, playing with her arousal. 

Asami shivered and moaned, bucking her hips up into Korra's fingers and pushing back to feel more. She was so-

"Sensitive," Korra whispered into Asami's neck and pulled harshly at the pink bud in-between her fingers.

"Yes!" Asami moaned.

"I'm going to fucking ruin you." Korra groaned and dipped two fingers into Asami's slick entrance and bit down onto the other girl's shoulder to muffle a moan. It was wet and tight and begging for more. Setting an agonizingly slow pace she pulled her fingers out and keened at Asami's protesting whimpers to circle around her engorged clit. 

Needing more than just touching, Korra lowered herself in between Asami's legs and flicked a tongue across the folds and dipped two fingers back in while groping the toned flesh of her ass with her other hand. She needed Asami like she needed air and fuck if she was going to let her go tonight.

"Korra! Wait!" Asami mewled. "It feels so right but I'm gonna fall."

"I'll catch you." Korra detached herself long enough to say. 

With that Asami allowed herself to be lost in the feeling that was Korra. Of course, she'd play with herself and she wasn't a stranger to sex, but holy  _ fuck _ did Korra know what she was doing. In minutes heat started pooling in her stomach and she made an attempt to grab at the walls to find purchase, after a few attempts she found her way into Korra's silky smooth hair and pulled, eliciting a moan from her. The vibrations around her clit were unreal and she tugged a little more to elicit the same reaction. 

"Holy shit I think I'm going to fucking come." Asami panted and felt her knees buckle. 

Korra moaned again and her orgasm suddenly hit her hard and fast. Her vision blacked out and an indescribable pleasure shot through her spine. If this is what being high felt like then she suddenly understood why some people became addicted to sex. 

"You taste so fucking good." Korra removed her fingers but continued lapping at Asami's sex.

"Your turn?" Asami asked through pants, overstimulated but wanting more. 

"Yeah, but let's get on the bed." 

Asami reached over to turn the water off and did her best to remember how to walk as Korra detached herself from Asami and exited the bathroom. Korra grabbed a few towels and laid them over the bed overlapping.

"What are you doing?" Asami reached for one but was stopped by Korra.

"Things are about to get messy, princess," Korra smirked at Asami's blush and guided her into the nest of towels. 

Korra guided Asami onto her back and straddled her waist. "Ever have anyone sit on your face before?" 

Asami shook her head, not trusting her voice.

"Want me to be your first?" The gleam in Korra's eye was irresistible and it left Asami biting back a moan.

"Please." She nearly begged.

"Okay, if it gets too much or if you want me to stop just slap my thighs three times okay?"

Asami nodded eagerly and tugged at Korra's hips which elicited a laugh from the other girl. "I'll try my best, I'm sorry if it's bad."

"Don't worry about that," Korra shifted so she hovered above Asami's mouth, the got breath ghosting over her folds had her erupting in goosebumps. "Just do what you think you'd like. I'll guide you around if I have to, but have fun princess." 

With both arms secured at Korra's waist, Asami pulled her down into her open mouth and got to work. Her pink tongue darted around curiously and Korra tried her best not to put all of her weight onto Asami despite her desperate attempts to pull her down. It felt good despite this being her first time and she let her hands wander up to her nipples and played with them. Asami wasn't the only one who liked to be touched. 

"Holy shit! Fuck!" Korra preened when Asami's tongue found her clit. She was eager and a little too rough, but it added to the tingling in Korra's spine.

"How you feeling?" Korra needed to check-in. If you weren't used to eating someone out then your tongue and jaw were in for a workout.

Asami continued and raised her thumb making sure to make eye contact. A groan ripped through her and she pulled herself off. Her whines of protest died in her throat when Korra moved off of her and caught her lips in a heated kiss. Fingers massaged her wet jaw and she allowed her mouth to open and accept the other girl's tongue.

"You look so good with your face drenched." Korra pulled off of her, face equally as shiny. Nothing would ever feel as good as watching the other covered in their mixed fluids.

Adjusting them so their legs were in-between each other, Korra gave Asami a minute so she could adjust to the sensation of their clits running against each other.

"Wait, I know what this is! Scissoring?" Innocent confidence was a good look on Asami.

Korra bit back a chuckle and nodded. "I like being eaten out, but I think this is the most fun getting off." Korra moved a bit faster, making sure to savor the sensation before continuing. "The glide makes it really nice." 

Asami blushed and hid her face in her hands. This was all so new to her and she felt a little dizzy with all of the want. Never in her life had she needed to get off so bad and never had she wanted sex so badly. She'd resigned herself to thinking she never really needed it, but now, underneath Korra and the feeling of a million lightning bolts dancing underneath her skin, she understood the appeal.

"Look at me," With a grind of her hips she let her hands wander Asami's soft body. "Touch me too. Be in the moment with me." 

Feeling the familiar coil in her stomach at Korra's voice she let go of her face and grabbed onto whatever skin she could find.

"Yes! Right there!" Asami bucked her hips up and moved in rhythm with Korra's little thrusts.

"I love to hear it. Tell me what makes you feel good, princess." 

Her eyes rolled back and a groan ripped from her chest. It was primal and unlike any noise she'd ever made before but it only egged Korra on further, throwing her own head back and moving faster in small circles. Toes curling and no longer able to form a coherent thought she felt the pressure building up and when it finally snapped her entire body seized up and she shook through her orgasm. She couldn't even care about what she looked like when she was literally being ridden through the most euphoric thing she'd ever felt. 

When she came to she realized that Korra wasn't much better and she was wiping at Asami's cheek furiously. Asami met Korra's hand in her own and turned to face to kiss her palm. They were wet and she was panting harder than when she was finished running.

"You're so gorgeous." Korra was breathless and laid down over Asami in an attempt to catch her own breath.

"How was I?" She was suddenly self-conscious. Korra was experienced with women while this was technically only her second time.

"The best sex I've ever had." Korra caught her in an embrace and pulled her flush against her sticky body. 

"Thanks," Asami blushed and buried her face in Korra's neck. "It was the best for me too."

"Use me whenever you want, princess, I won't ever say no."

* * *

** Bring your girlfriend to work day **

Korra wasn't really kidding when she said that the job was hers. From start to finish the entire process took 3 hours including the interview that was just a formality. While she was incredibly grateful for a job, she couldn't help but feel like she got in on nepotism. She could already hear the rumors about her only being there because she was fucking the talent. No matter, she'd take it all in stride and prove that she deserved to be there. Her work would speak for itself and she would be the most hardworking employee that they've ever seen no matter the task she was handed.

The job itself didn't seem too hard and she'd always been a fast learner and her enthusiasm had to make up for something, right? So her job duties were the least of her concern, instead thoughts of Korra's team hating her plagued her. Working in an environment where everyone hated you or walked on eggshells around you seemed like a recipe for disaster, but she needed this job and it was close to Korra so it couldn't be all bad, right?

Her first official day wouldn't start for another week, but Korra was eager to show her around and introduce all of the people they would be working with. Much to her surprise, Tenzin would be in charge of her and that meant that the kids were in charge of her too. Luckily, one of them was smitten with her so she had an in.

"It's you!" A now older Meelo bounced in place in front of her. "Are you here to be my girlfriend?"

Asami laughed as Korra slipped an arm around her and kicked Meelo away gently.

"In your dreams pipsqueak. This one's mine." Korra kissed Asami possessively and laced their fingers together in the taller girl's shoulders. "You gotta be this tall to ride." She gestured to her height.

"I'm sorry Meelo, I guess we just kept missing each other." Asami giggled at his dejected look.

"No fair!" He ran over to Ikki who was chattering quietly to Zhu Li and pulled on one of her buns. A fight ensued and they ran off with Jinora hot on their heels in an attempt to get them to stop.

“It’s lively out here.” Asami giggled and followed Korra down the hallway as she was introduced. As she was led into the band's lounge area she noticed that it looked just like the day of the love stream and her stomach knotted uncomfortably. She wasn't mad about it or anything that happened before they started dating for that matter, but the thought of Kuvira hating her made her nervous. There was no doubt that if Korra had to choose sides that she would choose her, but that somehow made it worse.

The last thing she wanted was to break up her favorite band. She could never hate Kuvira, the fan in her was too strong, but that didn't mean that Asami would give up her girlfriend. Before she had a chance to brace herself Korra opened the door and led her inside. The second they stepped in, Korra pointed at a startled Tahno and flipped him off.

"Told you I would make her mine!" She stuck her tongue out.

He turned to Asami and clutched his chest. "How could you?! You can do better than this bitch."

"Yeah, but she chose me and I'm not letting go so you can go fuck yourself on your mic." 

Asami held back her laughter as hard as she could, they really did act like brother and sister behind the scenes too.

"Well isn't this a nice little surprise!" Varrick sat up from his place on the couch next to Kuvira and strolled up to them. "Welcome aboard little miss! We're happy to have ya." He clasped both of her hands and grinned at her.

"Thanks," Asami laughed nervously and turned to Kuvira who had an unreadable look on her face. 

They stayed in the room for a while just hanging out like the first time they met, except this time it was Asami on Korra's lap instead of Kuvira. It should have made her happy, but instead she just felt dread. Every time she looked over at Kuvira the other girl would not be looking at her but the second she looked away she could feel a burning gaze threatening to pierce through her. Towards the end of their visit Tenzin came in and asked to speak to Korra, she untangled herself from Asami and left with Tenzin leaving the other girl to fend for herself.

Tahno and Varrick were fighting about the proper pronunciation of the word 'data' when Asami felt the weight in the couch shift beside her. Looking over she realized that Kuvira was closer than she was comfortable with, she offered a small nervous smile and opened her mouth to exchange pleasantries when she was interrupted.

"I know you mean well, but I was here before you, and I'll be here after you. So when you break her heart after you get tired of playing the gay part I'll be here to pick up the pieces."

Stunned into silence Asami couldn't help but let her mouth hang open. Maybe she hadn't realized she liked girls before she met Korra (even though it should have been obvious) but that didn't mean this was something fun to pass the time. She swallowed thickly and went to respond when Korra walked back into the room and called Asami over to leave.

Kuvira didn't know her or what she went through to be able to be with Korra, but that doesn't mean that she would just let her think that Korra was a phase to her if it was the last thing she did.

* * *

** Worth the wait **

In true women who love women fashion within weeks of dating, Asami moved in with Korra with the excuse of saving time on getting to work. No one bought it of course, but it gave Asami a sense of autonomy to move out of Opal's home. She missed them like crazy, but it wasn't like she never saw them, they did live close enough to each other and Asami loved to entertain in a space that she made her own. Korra gave her free reign when they moved in together and refused to let Asami ask for permission before she did something. It was as much her home as it was Korra's.

Now they were celebrating their 1st anniversary and getting ready for the cringiest thing they've ever done, getting a photo session of them as a couple done. Korra was so vehemently against it that Asami had to beg with her cutest pout for days before Korra reluctantly agreed on two conditions, she got to wear black and these photos would never go public. It's not like they were the best-kept secret, but they wanted to keep as much information away from Asami's father as they could. The man never tried to contact Asami after she walked out and like a good only child she wanted to do everything in her power to spite him. If that happened to be keeping her life as the girlfriend of a degenerate secret then so be it.

The photographer insisted that they use Korra's little pond in her big beautiful yard as the main location for the photos, especially now that she knew Asami's plan. The main reason that she wanted this shoot was not to immortalize their love in some cheesy suburban family way, that was only part of it. The real reason was because she was going to propose and she wanted the look on Korra's face to be framed in their home forever. Or until one of them died and decided to remarry, whichever came first.

"Honey!" Asami adjusted her earrings in place and smoothed over the synthetic alexandrite ring in her bra. The pros of wearing a skintight black dress were plenty but the one con was being unable to hide anything in it. "Are you ready?" 

"Yeah, just getting my boots on," Korra responded from their closet.

Korra always talked about how jewelry mining was unethical, so she made sure to go with a completely man-made ring that was made by a scientist who was paid a fair wage. The last thing she wanted was for Korra to deny her because of a diamond ring. That was one of the things that she loved about Korra, she tried her best to be as conscious as she could. While the ring wasn't super expensive. It did take a long time to save for, luckily Korra let her live there rent-free. Checking to make sure everything was in its right place one last time she turned around and walked out to the yard where their photographer awaited. 

The beginning started out innocently enough with standing next to each other and hugging whenever appropriate. It was easy to make each other laugh and soon enough the nerves of appearing too forced disappeared completely and was replaced with genuine smiles and soft romantic touches between the two. 

Near the end the photographer had them sit on a large rock near the pond and gave Asami the cue to begin her proposal. She stood up as nonchalantly as she could and dug the ring out of her dress before spinning around and crouching down. The dress wouldn't allow her to get on one knee so this will have to do. Korra's eyes went wide the second she saw what Asami was trying to do and her mouth fell open in a perfect 'o'.

"I know we talked about never wanting to get married in the beginning, but I know now that we've changed our minds. You're it for me baby and I would be so stupid to let the best thing that ever happened to me go. If you say no I'll always still love you and the times we spent together really did make me a better person."

Korra took the ring and dug into her own pocket to dig out a similar box. Now it was Asami's turn to be surprised as she took the box and opened it to find a ring with a square ruby jewel. "I guess you really do love me as much as I love you." 

Asami pushed Korra's shoulder playfully and demanded that she put the ring on Asami's finger.

Out of all the photos of the session, that would forever be her favorite one.

* * *

** No time like the present **

No one knew exactly how short their engagement would be, but 6 months felt like 6 millennia to Asami who just wanted to be married to Korra already. The support from their friends and Korra's family was immense and once Kuvira heard that they proposed at the same time she softened up towards Asami. All of the love and hard work put into their relationship did not go unnoticed by the people closest to them. Asami's therapist would also agree that she's made great strides in the time she's been attending.

One thing that Asami realized that she was immensely proud of is the fact that she was resilient and no one could take that away from her. She stood in front of the mirror in their shared bedroom with Opal and Pema helping her get dressed. It was a small wedding for only their closest friends and Korra's family. Asami peaked out of the window and smiled softly as she saw Ikki excitedly fiddling with the roses inside of the flower girl basket that she picked out while Meelo was playing with the pillow holding their marriage bands. Tonraq was nice enough to get licensed to become an officiant for them and it felt nice to know that there were people that supported them.

Of course, she missed Hiroshi, who doesn't want their parent to be happy and proud of them. They had a complicated relationship and while he was manipulative and terrible sometimes he was still the dad that rocked her to sleep at night and held her close after her mom died.

"You look gorgeous sweetie." Pema gave her a firm side hug to not wrinkle the front of her satin red dress. It was a little more revealing than she was used to, but Korra would probably appreciate it l.

"Thanks. Is it normal to be so nervous? I feel like I'm gonna throw up."

"I mean, I was pregnant with Jinora during my wedding so I'm gonna say yes."

They shared a laugh as Opal pinned her veil on her head. "You really do look so happy babes." She gave her a wet kiss on the cheek and backed out of the reflection so Asami could see herself all made up.

A knock at the door tore her away from her thoughts as Opal ran to answer it. 

"Oh hell no!" Opal tried to shut the door again but a foot lodged its way in making it impossible to shut it.

"Please! I have permission to be here!" 

It couldn't be. Asami's blood ran cold as she slowly turned to the door. She couldn't make out who exactly it was from the angle she was standing at, but she knew that voice anywhere.

"Who the  _ hell _ let you in?! Was it Mako?" Opal's voice was strained as she tried to slam the door on Hiroshi's foot. 

"Korra! I have a note from her." Pema ran over to the door and tore away the piece of paper from his hand. Quickly she anglicized it and her lips fell onto a firm line. She looked over at Asami and nodded before handing the note off.

> _ Asami, _
> 
> _ Please don't be mad or leave me at the altar. Your dad contacted me not too long ago when he heard about the engagement and at first, I told him to fuck off, but he was persistent. It seemed like he was really willing to change and apologize. I love you and I know that for all of the bad that your dad is, it does not negate his good in your eyes. I'll never be the picture-perfect daughter-in-law, but I love you enough to know that his apology would mean the world to you. I love you so much Asami and I hope that this wasn't all for nothing. _

> _ \- Korra _

She crumpled the letter in her hand and ripped it. Korra was right of course, but of all days her wedding day?! She did want Hiroshi to be there, but a little heads up would have been nice.

"What do you want, dad?" She called out loud enough for him to hear. 

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, for everything. I shouldn't have just let you walk out and I know that I was wrong. You're everything to me and I realized that so late and I almost missed your happy day because I'm a fucking idiot."

Asami dug her nails into her palm, she would  _ not _ cry and ruin the makeup that she and Opal spent so long on.

"You're not walking me down the aisle." She grumbled. "But it means a lot to me that you were willing to apologize for the first time in your life."

"I love you forever and always. I don't want to lose you again and I'll do anything to make this work." He sounded exasperated and honestly, she couldn't blame him.

"I love you too. If you mean that then you'll leave and sit down with everyone else while I finish getting ready."

"Thank you so much," a sniffle was heard and his foot finally left the door. Opal shut it loudly and the click of the lock could be heard. Footsteps receding to the backyard could be heard and Asami felt exhausted again.

"Do you want me to call off the wedding?" Opal stepped up behind her and soothed her goosebump-ridden arms. 

"No, I'll just divorce Korra after this and take her for all that she's worth." 

Pema was the first to break into laughter and Asami and Opal followed not too long after.

"I think you guys will be fine. Any long-term relationship takes a lot of forgiveness from both sides, and humor. It seems like you guys have that down." Pema got out through giggles.

"I know she means well, and I love her for it…" Asami started.

"But you want to strangle her." Opal continued. "Bolin's the same way." She rolled her eyes and linked her arm through Asami's. "Still wanna go through with this?"

"Yeah, I'll just drown her during the honeymoon." Asami grinned and walked out to the ceremony.

Never in a million years did she ever think that anyone other than her dad would walk her down the aisle, but the fact that Opal was on her arm and leading her over to Korra felt so right. No one was giving her away, her best friend was walking with her towards the next chapter of her life and it felt right. Once she reached Korra her arm extended automatically and lightly punched her in the shoulder. Their guests laughed it off and so did Korra who grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles mumbling her apologies.

All was forgiven and it was time to start the ceremony. Tonraq kept it short and sweet and spoke about his love for Korra's mother, about how marriage was the best thing to ever happen to him, and how he knew that it would be the same for Korra and Asami. Occasionally peaking out to the audience she could tell that everyone eats equally as moved, including her father. It made her heart melt and she reached out for Korra's hand once more like she would disintegrate if she didn't have it for a second longer.

Instead of vows being read publicly they decided to hold off until their first night together as a married couple to cry and be sappy. Meelo handed over the rings and once Tonraq finished stalling their kiss, they said "I Do" and Korra was being dipped a little too low into the most breathtaking kiss she'd ever had.

Coming up for air was mesmerizing as she stared down at Korra's flushed face and realized that she wouldn't have changed a single thing that she had to do to get here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was a homerun sprint to finish this. I can't believe it's done and I'm gonna miss this story. Thank you for your patience with me while I finished writing this and pointing out mistakes to me while I write. I'm not remotely don't with this couple and I have a couple other fics in the work currently. 
> 
> I can't believe all of the positive feedback I've gotten and that I've gotten over 400 kudos on this fic. I really hope that I was able to write something that so many people enjoyed. It was therapeutic to write this and it'll always have a special place in my stupid little heart.


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